Industry figures have told MPs the Chinese ban on waste imports is ‘the biggest problem the UK recycling industry has ever faced’ and have called for domestic secondary market development to counteract its effects.

Following accusations made by Greenpeace this week, Environment Secretary Michael Gove has failed to deny in Parliament that Defra is opposed to the recycling target of 65 per cent by 2035 set by the EU’s Circular Economy Package.

With the release of the Global Circularity Report claiming only nine per cent of the world’s resources are cycled back into the economy after use, the circular economy is front and centre at this year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting.

Five recyclable and compostable packaging innovations will share $1 million of funding after being announced as the winners of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Circular Materials Challenge in Davos, Switzerland, designed to finding alternatives to plastic packaging.

New public water fountains and bottle refill points are set to be set up across London, part of Mayor Sadiq Khan’s campaign against single-use plastic waste.

The European plastics industry has responded positively to the release of the EU’s first Europe-wide plastics strategy, expressing support for improved EPR and the headline goal of ensuring that all plastic packaging is recyclable by 2030.

In the wake of the government’s commitment to eliminate ‘avoidable’ plastic waste by 2042, supermarket Iceland has promised to make its own-brand products plastic free within five years, and other retailers are offering pledges of their own.

A round-up of news from the waste and resources sector including an extended contract for Biffa, new offerings from suppliers Mick George, an update on the Midlothian EfW plant and a new acquisition by Enva Group.

The Environment Agency has announced a £750,000 investment for the creation of a dedicated team to address plastic pollution in the South West of England.

The EU has adopted the first ever Europe-wide plastics strategy, placing an emphasis on creating secondary markets for recycled plastics in its bid to create a truly circular economy in Europe.