Lib Dems would consult on waste ‘Incineration Tax’

The manifesto reaffirmed the Lib Dems’ ‘Five Green Laws’ package, which includes passing a Resource Efficiency and Zero Waste Act to ‘build a thriving reuse and recycling industry’.

The manifesto also reiterated the Party’s pledge to increase penalties for waste crimes, aiming to increase average fines from £50,000 to £75,000 and sentences from 12 to 18 months.

And, the Lib Dems confirmed their commitment to a statutory 70% recycling target, although the aspirational deadline of 2030 was missing from the final document.

Significantly, the Party pledged to reinstate the Landfill Tax escalator, which was discontinued by Chancellor George Osborne in 2014. In addition, the Party would extend the escalator to the lower rate of landfill tax – which currently stands at £2.60 per tonne (see letsrecycle.com story).

Tax

The manifesto also claims the Lib Dems would consult on introducing a tax on energy from waste recovery, although there were no further details on how this would be implemented.

The manifesto reads: “Establish a coherent tax and regulatory framework for landfill, incineration and waste collection to drive continuous increases in reuse and recycling rates and ensure only non-recyclable waste is incinerated, including reinstating the Landfill Tax escalator and extending it to the lower rate and consulting on the introduction of an Incineration Tax.”

Under a Lib Dem government, the Green Investment Bank would receive ‘full borrowing powers’, while the Natural Capital Committee would also be commissioned to investigate the potential for other resource taxes and deposit refund schemes.

The Committee would undertake a ‘Stern style’ report into resource efficiency, recommending legally binding targets for reducing net consumption on unsustainable resources. A much-touted Office for Environmental Responsibility would also be established.

And, as with the Green Party manifesto, the Lib Dem document takes a similar interest in the growth of anaerobic digestion industry to produce biogas and a sustainable fertiliser.

The Party would work with local authorities to extend separate food waste collections to at least 90% of households by 2020 to provide additional feedstock for AD plants – though the Lib Dems have not moved to ban the material from landfill altogether.

Zero Waste Act

The Lib Dem manifesto promises the Zero Waste Act would include;

• Implementation of recommendations from our planned ‘Stern Report’ on resource efficiency, which the Natural Capital Committee will conduct;
• Increased penalties for waste crimes, aiming to move from an average fine of £50,000 to £75,000 and to an average sentence of 12 to 18 months;
• A statutory recycling target of 70% for waste in England, and;
• Regulation to promote design that enhances repairability, reuse and recycling, requiring specified products to be sold with parts and labour guarantees for at least five years.

Speaking ahead of the Lib Dem manifesto launch in South London today, Party leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: “This manifesto is a blueprint for a stronger economy and a fairer society. At its heart is one word that is absolutely central to what Liberal Democrats believe: opportunity.”