Despite this, the scheme took some knocks over the weekend after it emerged that all three candidates to replace Nicola Sturgeon as first minister say they will delay the scheme. And, media reports in Scotland also questioned aspects of the scheme.
The Scottish Sun reported that the UK government will block the scheme by rejecting the request to exempt it from the Internal Market Act while the Scotland on Sunday newspaper queried the contractual arrangements for delivering the project.
Without an exemption from the Internal Market Act, the scheme would only apply to single-use drinks containers bottled in Scotland, putting Scottish producers at a disadvantage.
Giving a UK government perspective, a spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs told letsrecycle.com that “the UK government’s preference would be for a UK-wide DRS as the best way to maximise environmental benefits, minimise disruption to the drinks industry and ensure choice for consumers.” They added that “as the Scottish government is pressing ahead with their own scheme, the UK government is working with them to ensure as much interoperability as possible between the schemes when DRS launches across the UK.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish government said that “the formal process for excluding the deposit return scheme regulations from the Internal Market Act is well under way”. This confirms the announcement made by the Scottish minister for circular economy and Green Party MSP Lorna Slater, who stated this in a letter addressed to all MSPs on 9 February.
The Scottish government spokesperson explained: “This is the same process we went through to protect Scotland’s ban on many single-use plastic products last year. We expect a decision from the UK Government as soon as possible given that this is what is needed to give industry absolute clarity (see letsrecycle.com story).”
In Scotland, the scheme is set to go live in August, with the DRS in England, Northern Ireland and Wales planned to launch more than two years later in October 2025, raising concerns about interoperability (see letsrecycle.com story).
Internal Market Act
According to the Scottish government’s website, the Internal Market Act was created on the back of Brexit, replacing the EU law constraints that applied symmetrically across the UK until the UK exited the EU.
The Act, led by the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), introduces a new market access regime, which means that goods sold in one part of the UK are automatically accepted across all other parts of the UK, regardless of the rules there, the website explained.
It outlined that the project was criticised by other devolved nations, as it turned from a “joint piece of work” into a “solely UK government generated proposal”. The website then added that UK Ministers alone have the power to change what is in and out of scope of these provisions, with no formal role for the devolved legislatures.
Leadership candidates
The planned introduction of the scheme in Scotland has been heavily debated, attracting different opinions. Prior to resigning, the former Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon has rejected calls from her own MPs to pause the rollout of the scheme, but said that the Scottish government “will consider any changes that can sensibly be made” (see letsrecycle.com story).
Following Ms Sturgeon’s resignation, voting on a new SNP leader is due to take place next month. The leadership candidates health secretary Humza Yousaf, finance secretary Kate Forbes and former community safety minister Ash Regan have all revealed their plans to pause the scheme if they win.
Mr Yousaf has said that smaller drinks producers will temporarily be exempt from the scheme, which has been mentioned as part of a series of moves aimed at softening the DRS rollout (see letsrecycle.com story). On a similar note, Ms Forbes has pledged to pause the scheme and “iron out its problems” if elected First Minister, with Ms Regan also promising to delay the scheme.
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