It has been widely reported that a report made on behalf of a House of Lords committee believes reducing VAT could encourage more people to have items repaired rather than throwing them away, so cutting waste.
The report also suggests the government should reduce VAT for products that use sustainable materials.
Lord O’Neill who chairs the Lords science sub-committee on waste reduction, said: “We would like to see the VAT regime reformed, so that products that have a long life-cycle, or can be easily and cheaply repaired rather than replaced, are made economically more attractive. This would be an important step in turning away from the ‘throwaway’ consumer culture we currently have.”
The report has called for the government to move its focus away from consumers and towards companies in its effort to cut waste as household rubbish accounts for only 9 per cent of waste in the UK.
The report also backed new “eco-labels” to help people understand the environmental impact of what they were buying which, at the moment, are widely regarded as being unclear or misleading.
Lord O’Neill said: “There has been an impressive increase in recycling of domestic waste in the last few years, but that only represents a tiny fraction of all waste generated in the UK.
“It is time for the government to move its priorities from household waste to the far greater problem of industrial and commercial waste.”
Some hope!…chancellor needs cash, the sheeple will supply it.
I”m amazed that someone has actually admitted that domestic waste is not the biggest issue.
Hopefully, with the rise in oil prices, it”ll become economical to produce stuff in the UK again.
there again, consumerism is driven by style, not substance.-re-educate the punters?