Award of RESAS/011/20 - Analysis of Responses to consultation on introducing market restrictions ...

Introduction1. The Scottish Government (SG), on behalf of the Scottish Ministers, is seeking to commission a contractor to undertake the analysis of responses to the public consultation on Introducing market restrictions on single-use plastic items in Scotland. The overall aim of the contract is provide robust and timely analysis and reporting on the responses to the consultation, to inform Scotland’s implementation of the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive, as per the commitment in the latest Programme for Government published on 01 September 2020.2. This consultation is seeking the views of stakeholders on the introduction of market restrictions on certain single-use plastic (SUP) items in line with Article 5 of the EU Directive (EU) 2019/904 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment.3. This specification sets out what is required, provides background information on the Single-use Plastic Directive consultation, and invites contractors to respond to Schedule 4 (Quality Questions) and to Schedule 5 (Pricing Schedule) to form your tender for the contract.4. We welcome bids from individuals, organisations or collaborations / consortia with the appropriate skills and experience. If there is a collaborative bid there must be one lead organisation.Background and context5. The European Commission introduced the Directive (EU) 2019/904 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment which came into force on 2 July 2019. It aims to tackle pollution from single-use plastics and fishing gear, as the items most commonly found on European beaches, and promote the transition to a circular economy.6. The Scottish Government fully support the EU vision of phasing-out single-use plastics wherever possible and we are aiming to meet or exceed the standards set out in the SUP Directive and build on these to support Scotland’s position as a leader in the Circular Economy.7. The products included within the scope of this consultation are single-use plastic cutlery, plates, straws, beverage stirrers and balloon sticks, expanded polystyrene (EPS/XPS) food containers and expanded polystyrene (EPS/XPS) cups, as well as all products made of oxo-degradable plastic.8. The proposed introduction of market restrictions is the first step of a package of measures to address marine litter and end our throwaway culture, building on existing Scottish Government policy to addressing these issues including the single-use carrier bag charge and restrictions on plastic-stemmed cotton buds.