WEEE - Research to identify and address gaps in existing WEEE data relevant to the ongoing policy review

All four nations of the UK are committed to protecting the environment. We all want to make our air purer, our water cleaner, our land greener and our food more sustainable. We want to restore and enhance the environment for the next generation, leaving it in a better state than we found it. A key part of the success of these ambitions will be how we tackle waste. In 2017 Defra published its 25 Year Environment Plan which is a plan of action. It commits us to using resources efficiently and to keep them in use for longer to minimise waste and reduce its environmental impacts by promoting reuse and recycling. We will work towards eliminating all avoidable waste by 2050 and all avoidable plastic waste over the lifetime of the 25 Year Environment Plan. In 2019, the UK became the first major nation to legislate for net zero carbon emissions by 2050. This means that the government must shape policies and regulations that influence the transition of the whole economy towards net zero. Reducing electronic waste can help to cut carbon emissions. The rise in purchases of electronic goods is a significant driver of emissions globally. By 2040 and on current trends, it is estimated that worldwide emissions from the production and use of electronics could rise to a level exceeding half that associated with the global transportation sector today.

The Resources and Waste Strategy for England published in 2018, adds detail the actions outlined in the 25 Year Environment Plan. It includes a commitment for the government to work with the devolved nations to consult on changing the waste electrical and electronic (WEEE) and batteries producer responsibility regimes to incentivise more sustainable design, increase recycling and ensure alignment with a common framework. The proposals are part of an ambitious, co-ordinated programme of waste reform which places the principle of producer responsibility at its heart.