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Government outlines plastic packaging tax evaluation plan

HMRC has published a plan setting out how it will evaluate the plastics packaging tax, which will seek to “address evidence gaps and provide a better understanding of the effect on businesses who are liable”. 

Plastic packaging tax
The plastic packaging tax raised £276 million in its first year of operation

The government announced plans to evaluate the tax in April, as part of its efforts to provide transparency and accountability of public funds

The evaluation plan was published yesterday (14 December), where HMRC said evaluation of PPT will aim to measure:

  • Performance against stated policy objectives
  • Performance against relevant wider government policy objectives
  • Any unintended consequences (positive and negative)
  • Impact on businesses

The findings from this evaluation will inform the development of PPT in the future and tax policy more generally, HMRC and the Treasury said.

Sources

HMRC and the Treasury said the evaluation will draw on a range of data sources, such as trends from tax administration data held by HMRC, existing surveys with mid-size and large businesses, and where appropriate, externally commissioned research with other businesses and industry experts to address evidence gaps and provide a better understanding of both the effect on businesses who are liable for or impacted by the tax.

To ensure the evaluation is robust, HMRC and HM Treasury intend to “continue to work closely with and leverage expertise from partners across government and will also engage with external academics, evaluation experts, industry experts and others”.

Many in the sector have been calling for the tax to rise, arguing it does not provide enough of an incentive to use recycled plastic. The tax has been risen from the original £200 to £210.82 per tonne, and will rise in line with inflation next year.

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