Changes to the Environment Agency’s charging and permits regime will come into force on 1 April despite industry concerns that this is too soon for businesses to prepare.

The European Commission has agreed on its proposal for a Circular Economy Monitoring Framework to track progress towards the EU’s circular economy goals, and has also released a rundown of the EU's progress up to this point.

Shops and businesses across London have signed up to take part in a trial scheme that offers free tap water ‘refills’ to members of the public as part of the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan’s efforts to tackle single-use plastic waste.

Wales could be set to target an 80 per cent municipal waste recycling rate by 2035, according to Welsh Minister for Environment Hannah Blythyn at the CIWM Resource Conference Cymru yesterday (14 March).

The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s announcement of a consultation on how the tax system can be used to reduce the consumption of single-use plastics has received widespread acclaim from the waste and resources industry following the Spring Statement yesterday (13 March).

Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond is set to announce a public consultation on a plastics tax, along with a £20-million innovation fund to develop alternatives to the problem material.

New waste crime powers have been approved by the National Assembly for Wales to prevent access to problem waste sites and force operators to remove illegally-dumped waste.

Progress on the EU’s Plastics Strategy continues unabated as Europe’s environment ministers reached agreement on the content of the strategy at a meeting of the Environment Council on Monday (5 March).

EU-wide legislation on single-use plastic is on the cards for this summer, according to comments by the European Commission’s Vice President Frans Timmermans.

Parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee has criticised the government’s inadequate response to its ‘Plastic bottles: Turning back the plastic tide’ report and lack of action of preventing plastic bottle waste.