Source · Select Committees · Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Recommendation 23
23
Accepted
Finally, we recommend that the Government should consider the merits of introducing an incineration tax,...
Recommendation
Finally, we recommend that the Government should consider the merits of introducing an incineration tax, designed to drive up demand for—and therefore attract private capital investment in—alternative waste disposal methods once they are viable, including mechanical, chemical and composting recycling facilities. (Paragraph 101) International plastics
Government Response Summary
The government considers the intention of the recommendation to be already addressed through the consultation on the expansion of the UK ETS to include waste incineration, and the Plastic Packaging Tax, and that an additional incineration tax is not required.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
The government has consulted on the expansion of the UK ETS, with a Call for Evidence as to whether this expansion should include waste incineration with no energy recovery, and energy from waste (EfW). The government is considering the responses to the consultation and will publish a response in due course. Rather than being a traditional tax, the UK ETS works on the ‘cap and trade’ principle, where a cap is set on the total amount of certain greenhouse gases that can be emitted by sectors covered by the scheme. This limits the total amount of carbon (or its equivalent) that can be emitted and, as the cap decreases over time, provides a signal to decarbonise at the pace and scale required to keep emissions at or below the cap. This therefore makes a significant contribution to how we meet the net zero 2050 target and other carbon reduction commitments. The proposal detailed in the government’s Call for Evidence is that, if the UK ETS is expanded to waste incineration with no energy recovery and EfW, this will apply to the incineration of fossil derived material by all waste incinerators. It is intended that the expansion of the UK ETS would help to incentivise behaviours to reduce fossil-derived plastic in the waste stream, including more recycling and mixed waste sorting, and reduce subsequent carbon emissions. In light of the proposals to expand the UK ETS to include incineration with no energy recovery, and EfW and the Plastic Packaging Tax, the government considers that the intention of the Committee’s recommendation is already being addressed, and an additional incineration tax is not required to incentivise investment in alternative waste disposal methods for plastic waste.