The Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) report on the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) ranks the successful delivery of Collection and Packaging reforms as “unachievable”.
The IPA annual report for 2022 to 2023 shows the progress made on projects included in the GMPP. In the report, the IPA ranks Collection and Packaging reforms in the red category, which means successful delivery of the project appears to be unachievable.
If a project is ranked in the red category, it means the IPA believe there are major issues with project definition, schedule, budget, quality and/or benefits delivery, which do not appear to be manageable or resolvable. The category also means that the IPA believes the project may need rescoping and/or its overall viability reassessed.
Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR), Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers (DRS) and Consistency in Recycling Collections (Consistency) are the three projects included within the Collection and Packaging reforms programme.
Collection and Packaging reforms
Last month (June), the Prime Minister consulted with ministers about delaying pEPR, according to a report in The Telegraph.
When approached for comment, a Defra (Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs) spokesperson told Circular Online work is ongoing to deliver the EPR scheme and they’re continuing to engage closely with manufacturers, retailers and packaging companies on the design of the scheme.
There is also uncertainty around Consistency reforms as the government’s much-delayed consultation response is still yet to be published.
Earlier this year, the Scottish government announced it was delaying the launch of its DRS until at least October 2025 in line with other UK nations after UK ministers rejected the first minister’s request to reverse its decision that Scotland must exclude glass from its DRS.
Earlier this year, Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey told MPs the “best outcome” for DRS policy would be one scheme aligned across UK nations.
