CLARITY NEEDED ON LONG TERM LANDFILL TAX LEVELS

Responding to the Chancellor's Budget Statement today, ESA Chief Executive Dirk Hazell noted that the short term strengthening of the landfill tax signal was not accompanied by a longer term signal to give investors the certainty to build recycling infrastructure. He also reiterated the industry’s call on the Government to accelerate green procurement to strengthen recycling markets.

Commenting, Mr Hazell said: 

“ESA would have preferred the Government to give a signal on future landfill tax levels going beyond the three year landfill tax escalator announced today. While today's announcement will undoubtedly encourage British businesses to think much harder about recycling far more, investors envisage new British recycling infrastructure lasting for decades and therefore need a long term signal of the type already given by the Shadow Chancellor if this green component of British economic recovery is to provide the largest sustainable number of new British jobs in recycling.

In addition, it would be a helpful strengthening of recycling markets if the Government - and, indeed, the Scottish Government - could now announce an acceleration of green procurement plans as this would help provide British jobs in the current difficult climate, particularly in a context where the public sector now accounts for about half of GDP.'

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