Build national resilience and deliver £25 billon boost to UK economy by kickstarting the circular economy, say cross-party group of MPs.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the Environment says transitioning to a circular economy could deliver a £25 billion boost to the UK economy by 2035 and create ‘hundreds of thousands’ of jobs across the country.
Chaired by Labour’s Andrew Pakes MP, the APPG says the UK can become more resilient to global instability by using resources more efficiently and giving consumers a ‘right to repair’, which ensures products can be fixed when they break.
For many of the questions facing us, the circular economy provides some answers.
The group’s key asks, along with giving consumers a ‘right to repair’, are to embed the reuse of critical minerals into the Clean Energy Mission and set a goal to bring the UK’s resource use within global limits by 2050.
Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay MP, Conservative Dame Caroline Dinenage MP, Labour’s Uma Kumaran MP, and the Liberal Democrats’ Wera Hobhouse MP have endorsed the asks.
The cross-party group are launching a report today (17 June) at a parliamentary reception, featuring a keynote speech from Environment Secretary Steve Reed.
The report is backed by businesses including SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK and Mura Technology, as well as organisations like the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA), Zero Waste Scotland, and the think tank Green Alliance.
The report includes a six-step plan to make better use of resources and kickstart the circular economy, which are:
- Take a whole economy approach;
- Direct investment in circular business and innovation;
- Cut the cost of living with a real right to repair;
- Enhance clean energy security with circularity;
- Build the skills needed to get there; and
- Set a long-term goal to bring UK resource use within planetary boundaries.
Commenting on the report’s launch, Andrew Pakes, Chair of the Environment APPG, said: “For many of the questions facing us, the circular economy provides some answers.
“How do we make the UK more resilient in a fractured world? How do we bring skilled jobs to our high streets and industrial heartlands?
“How do we clean up our streets, rivers and seas? Making better use of precious resources holds a key to all of these.”
It is pleasing to see greater political consensus developing around kickstarting the circular economy.
Commenting on this six-step plan, Diane Crowe, Group Sustainability Director at Reconomy, said: “It is pleasing to see greater political consensus developing around kickstarting the circular economy.
“By promoting circular practices such as recycling, reuse and decoupling growth from resource use, and giving consumers a real ‘right to repair’, not only can this lower carbon emissions, but also unlock material cost savings and boost economic sustainability for businesses.
“With heightened geopolitical uncertainty, trade wars, inflation and a slowing economy, the circular economy can address some of the greatest structural challenges in our economy.”
