Tory incentive plans merely salesmanship

Earlier this week, the Conservatives gave their backing to schemes which rewarded people for recycling rather than sometimes punishing those who do not, as the Government is currently proposing under the Climate Change Bill (see letsrecycle.com story).

The idea was pushed even further on Wednesday night (July 9), when shadow chancellor George Osborne told a Green Alliance event that schemes such as RecycleBank in America – where residents receive vouchers according to how much recycling they did – could completely turn recycling in the UK “on its head.”

He said: “I'm pleased to be able to report that we are working with the Local Government Association, the Mayor of London and Conservative local authorities such as Windsor and Maidenhead to establish how paying the public to recycle schemes might be implemented in the UK”

However, today, minister for waste, biodiversity and climate change Joan Ruddock claimed that the Conservatives were merely “copying” Labour ideas.

She said: “George Osborne is simply copying what Labour has already done and claiming it's his idea. In 2005 we started helping 53 local areas offer rewards for recycling, including cash and vouchers, and all councils currently have the power to run these schemes.

“Under the new pilots we're proposing, Labour is providing even more funding for councils who want to try out financial incentives to encourage more recycling.

“Osborne's speech simply exposes disagreement in the Conservative party between Eric Pickles who has tried to bully councils from central office, and George Osborne who agrees with Labour that local people should be able to choose how recycling is carried out in their area,” she added.

Tax

It is not just the issue of recycling incentives, however, in which the Government and the Conservatives are at odds.

At the Green Alliance event, Mr Osborne also said he would provide more certainty over future levels of Landfill Tax- and issue which has caused strong concerns among the LGA (see letsrecycle.com story ).

He said: “The Government has announced that the standard rate of landfill tax will increase by £8 per tonne each year until 2010-11. However, no information has been provided beyond this date. That simply isn't good enough.

“We need to provide long-term stable framework that enables entrepreneurs to introduce innovative waste solutions in the UK.

“That's why I can today announce that we will provide a commitment that we will put a floor under the announced 2010 level of landfill tax until 2020.This will guarantee that the landfill tax will not fall in real terms, and provide a stable tax environment for long-term investment,” he added.

It is not yet clear whether the Government is likely to revise its Landfill Tax system, with a Treasury spokesman commenting: “As part of the budget process all taxes are kept under review and decisions on tax are taken by the Chancellor on a budget by budget basis.”