The trade bodies have accused the government of making a “u-turn” on previously announced plans to commission new research and modelling on the implications for shops, consumers and local authorities.
Scottish Grocers’ Federation chief executive Pete Cheema called it an “atrocious decision” and said the scheme was “too costly, too disruptive and too expensive”. Cheema said the decision, announced today (5 September), was “bad policy making and bad government – there is no evidence to justify this decision.
“If the Scottish government wanted to significantly damage the viability of an independent convenience store industry in Scotland, which provides 42,000 jobs and contributes over £500m to the economy, then this is an ideal way to do it.”
James Lowman, chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) also hit out at the decision. “Today’s announcement undermines the valuable work Zero Waste Scotland were doing to model the costs and implications of a DRS for convenience retailers, consumers and local authorities. Our view remains that DRS would impose massive unnecessary time and cost burdens on retailers operating from small premises. A small shop exemption is also not the answer as it would just divert customers to larger stores where they could receive returns on their deposits.”
The Scottish Wholesale Association (SWA) accused the government of reneging on its earlier commitment to consult with the public before developing the scheme, which aims to increase recycling rates and reduce litter. The organisation had been pressing for the government to undertake exploratory modelling work on any the scheme which it had committed to earlier in the year.
Kate Salmon, executive director of the SWA, said: “The announcement comes before any exploratory modelling work to assess the effectiveness and impacts of a scheme. The government has reneged on its previous commitment to wholesalers and other stakeholders that options would be put to the public for consultation before ministers reached a final decision on whether or not to support DRS.
“Zero Waste Scotland has admitted that it has done no assessment of how this proposal would impact on Scotland’s food and drink businesses. We stand by our view that a deposit return scheme would be impractical and costly for consumers, businesses and local councils.” Salmon said the organisation would continue to engage with the government to try to develop a scheme “which minimises the negative impacts on consumers, existing kerbside schemes and businesses”.
Making the announcement, the Scottish National Party said it will “develop a DRS designed to increase recycling rates and reduce littering and implement it across Scotland. We will ensure the scheme is tailored to meet Scotland’s specific needs and we will work closely with the business community during its design and implementation.”
Article originally appeared on Talking Retail
