Kristian Dales, FCC Environment’s communications director, said: “The reality is that the industry needs clarity on direction of travel right now, irrespective of whether the UK votes to stay in or leave Europe.”
And, he warned that the referendum could be a distraction: “The industry faces a number of system constraints – weak policy, outdated legislation, devolved agendas, a lack of leadership on vision or strategy – and an in/out vote is not going to fix that anytime soon.
“Because of this, the EU referendum vote could be perceived as a red herring. But it does offer the opportunity, regardless of the outcome, for the industry to re-engage with government.”
Strategy
Mr Dales told letsrecycle.com that there had been a “fundamental problem over the last three years with three ministers and a lack of consistency and any long term strategy”.
However, he welcomed the call from recycling minister Rory Stewart for contributions from the sector as to what it would like to see in a waste strategy (see letsrecycle.com story).
The FCC director said: “The industry is in the process of putting that together through the ESA (Environmental Services Association).”
And, he added that an ESA working group on the topic is looking for a “more stable investment climate and a more consistent collection methodology. We also would like to see demand stimulated for commodities at the back end, and that discussion of the role of energy from waste should be considered in the mix.”
In terms of the referendum itself, Mr Dales suggested that within the UK there will be considerable discussion of the views in both the ‘remain’ and ‘leave’ camps. However, from the company point of view, he declared: “We are Spanish-owned and there are clear benefits to FCC with the UK as part of the EU.”
Circular
But, he emphasised that “Whether we stay in or not some of these policy issues will not change. There is a lack of policy direction. If If we stay in the circular economy package stays in place, and we see the status quo. If we come out, it will take two years to exit and there are limited resources in Defra in terms of direction.
“A lot could happen if we come out – if we stay in we could still see a period of drift with no strategy. In literal terms staying in provides us with the existing framework. But it we came out it would be unrealistic to think we wouldn’t stick with the existing framework at least in the short to medium term.”
For the full view from Kristian Dales, FCC communications director: click here.
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