The Government could require online retailers and marketplaces to
collect old electronics from consumers to ensure there is an
equal obligation for the collection of e-waste as physical
retailers. The move could make it easier for consumers to recycle
old electrical items, while ensuring retailers are not
disadvantaged compared to online competitors.
The commitment is within the Government’s response to the
Environmental Audit Committee’s report on Electronic Waste in the
Circular Economy.
The Government is also consulting on rolling out kerbside
collection for e-waste around the country. The Committee welcomes
the acknowledgment that more needs to be done to collect small
electrical items. In addition to the Government considering
kerbside collections, it will also explore ways to enhance
retailer obligations to provide more collection points for
e-waste for consumers.
The Government outlined that provisions within the Environment
Bill could improve consumer awareness of the repairability and
recyclability of products. For example, companies could be
mandated to label products with what components are recycled and
how repairable the item is. This could in turn help consumers
make more sustainable purchasing decisions and reduce their
consumption of resources.
However, the Committee is disappointed that the Government has
rejected the Committee’s recommendation to reduce VAT on repair
services. The Government argued that any resultant loss in tax
revenue would have to be balanced elsewhere. The Committee
believes that the measures would have reduced the financial
barriers to the repair of electrical items.
The Government has also rejected a recommendation for targets on
the recovery of critical raw materials and retaining value from
old electronics. During the inquiry, the Committee heard that a
continued focus on weight-based targets can overlook the valuable
materials that weigh less. Many of these materials and
components, such as gold, tungsten, indium, lithium and cobalt,
are particularly important to the UK’s low-carbon ambitions as
they are used in wind turbines, solar panels and car batteries.
The Committee warned in its report that the global supply of
these materials is unstable and at current rates they may
eventually run out, so retrieving them for re-use from e-waste is
crucial.
Environmental Audit Committee Chairman, Rt Hon MP, said:
“Levelling the playing field for online giants and physical
retailers in the take-back of e-waste is important if we are to
cut down on the amount of e-waste disposed of incorrectly. We
need to make urgent improvements to the reuse and recycling of
such products, and I am pleased that the Government has
recognised the role online retailers and marketplaces should play
in taking increased responsibility for the e-waste streams they
help generate.
“It is also reassuring that the Environment Bill could pave the
way for better labelling on the recyclability of products and
informing consumers what components have been recycled. As the
Bill’s passage through Parliament has been delayed, it may be
some time until we see products on shelves giving this detail. It
is important that the Government keeps up the pace towards this
goal.
“The Government has failed to acknowledge the importance of
extracting precious metals from old electronics, dismissing the
Committee’s finding that weight-based targets are insufficient to
ensure the extraction of many of these light metals. These
metals, including tungsten and cobalt, are crucial in the
manufacture of wind turbines and solar panels – and their
continued supply is therefore vital to making net zero Britain a
reality. But we are at serious risk of creating supply shortages
if we fail to retrieve these rare materials from old devices.
“Our report made the case for quick and decisive action to tackle
the e-waste tsunami. While we are pleased that some of our
recommendations are being taken forward, the Government seems to
ignore the urgency of getting a grip on the growing e-waste
problem.”
