Covid-19 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have made it clear the UK must dramatically increase recycling, environment secretary Steve Reed has warned.
He said global supply-chain shocks over the past five years showed the country can “no longer rely on importing 80 per cent of raw materials from abroad”.
“To ensure our national security in an increasingly unstable world, we have no choice,” added Reed in a speech in London at the end of March.
“We must embrace circular, local supply chains to reduce our exposure to global shocks and prevent us running out of critical resources.”
Hailing work already done by the government to boost material recovery, he added: “We need a bigger shift to an economic system that encourages repair, reuse and innovation, where resources are used again and again and waste is designed out of the system right from the start.”
Reed said the Circular Economy Taskforce would publish a strategy this autumn.
“It will include the long-term regulatory roadmaps that businesses asked for, showing the journey to circularity, sector by sector, so you have the certainty and direction to invest in the future,” he pledged.
“We will start with five sectors that have the greatest potential to grow the economy: chemicals and plastics; construction; textiles; transport; and agrifood.”
