There is a duty in the Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012 for local authorities to provide a collection for glass and 30 out of 32 Councils have signed the Scottish Household Recycling Charter and the supporting Code of Practice. The Code of Practice is being reviewed to ensure that it aligns with the new Deposit Return System (DRS) and the model for future local authority glass collections will be considered as part of that process.

The introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will significantly increase the quantity and quality of glass recyclate, a significant proportion of which is projected to be clear glass. Our expectation is that glass containers not captured through DRS will continue to be collected by local authorities through local recycling services.

Glass capture rates in different European countries reflect a number of policies and practices acting in combination over time, with the existence of long-standing extended producer responsibility schemes and the adoption of pay as you throw consumer charging measures often featuring.

Scotland’s DRS has been developed with Scotland’s unique policy, infrastructure and existing performance levels in mind and our intention is that it will operate alongside Scotland’s kerbside collection and bring site arrangements.

As set out in the answer to S5W-25865 on 5 November 2019, the performance target for DRS is based on experience of other high-performing DRS schemes in Europe and is therefore considered to be ambitious but achievable.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

There is currently limited evidence from other deposit return schemes (DRS) to suggest a widespread switch away from single-use glass to other materials.

The introduction of deposit return will significantly increase the quantity and quality of all target materials including recycled PET plastic, creating an aggregated and high-quality feedstock for reprocessing. We are committed to working with industry to maximise the economic opportunities associated with this and, in particular, are exploring the opportunities associated with the re-processing of PET plastic captured through the scheme.

The introduction of a deposit return scheme (DRS) will significantly increase the quantity and quality of glass recyclate from single-use drinks containers. While it will be for drinks producers to manage material collected through the scheme, we are committed to working with industry to maximise the economic opportunities associated with this high-quality feedstock.

The Scottish Government believes that deposit return represents the best opportunity to deliver increases in the quantity and quality of glass recyclate. We acknowledge that its inclusion will increase the cost and complexity of the scheme, but the Full Business Case Stage 1 that has been published for the scheme demonstrates that it will also deliver substantial additional benefits.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with stakeholders on plans for implementation of the scheme, including through its Implementation Advisory Group. That work builds on extensive evidence gathered from other international schemes, a number of which successfully collect glass.

As set out in the ‘Consultation on reforming the UK packaging producer responsibility system’ published in February 2019, the UK Government, Scottish Government, and other devolved administrations intend to establish new extended producer responsibility arrangements for all household packaging waste.

The proposals include a requirement that producers cover the full net cost (taking account of revenue from the sale of materials for recycling) of managing their packaging at end-of-life. Analysis cited in the consultation suggests that at present less than 7% of the cost of managing that waste is covered by producers.

As set out in the Scottish Government’s “A Deposit Return Scheme for Scotland: Full Business Case Stage 1” (FBC), our proposals for deposit return draw on experience of other high-performing schemes in Europe and have been designed to maximise consumer participation.

Accordingly, the FBC concludes that a performance target requiring the capture of 90% of containers within three years of the scheme’s operation represents an ambitious but achievable performance objective. This is subject to a minimum capture rate of 85% by material type.

The Scottish Government’s “A Deposit Return Scheme for Scotland: Full Business Case Stage 1” details the costs associated with the operation of an ambitious scheme which includes glass. This includes the costs associated with the acquisition and operation of reverse vending machines (RVMs).

It is the intention that all costs incurred by return points be met through a handling fee paid by producers or a scheme administrator acting on their behalf. Again, this includes costs associated with the purchase, lease, maintenance or upkeep of RVMs.

A Fairer Scotland Impact Assessment was published alongside the draft Regulations on 10 September 2019 and can be found at:

https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/consultation-paper/2019/09/deposit-return-schemme-scotland-regulations-accompanying-statement-proposed-regulations/documents/fairer-scotland-impact-assessment/fairer-scotland-impact-assessment/govscot%3Adocument/fairer-scotland-impact-assessment.pdf