Under a new SNP/Green crackdown, local councils would also be handed the power to impose fines on households that fail to recycle properly.
Penalties are likely to be set at a similar level to parking fines, which currently start at £60 but can be lowered to £30 if paid within two weeks.
Any ‘serious and persistent’ offenders could be referred to police and face criminal prosecution. It is also likely to lead to local authorities stepping up spying missions on family waste bins.
The draconian plans were revealed yesterday within the Circular Economy Bill, which includes the possibility of a ‘latte levy’ on single-use takeaway coffee cups.
It comes after the SNP was forced to shelve the ‘ill-thought through’ and costly Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), which would have added a refundable 20p onto the price of all drinks in plastic bottles, glass bottles or cans.
Tory MSP Maurice Golden said: ‘Many of the measures set out in this Bill are welcome. But the truth is they are too little, too late in many cases, and most of them could be embarked upon without the need for legislation. A Bill on the circular economy should have been introduced years ago – so much so that by the time this is introduced many of the targets will already be missed.
‘People and businesses will be concerned that this is yet more warm words from an SNP/Green Government which has failed badly on the environment.
‘These things can only work when you bring the public along too, and too often the Scottish Government has tried to impose ill-thought-through plans on the population. We can only hope lessons have been learned from the shambolic implementation of policies like DRS to ensure objectives like this can be met more effectively.’
Other measures included in the Bill will see new rules preventing shops from destroying unsold consumer goods and fines for people who throw rubbish out of vehicles.
The proposals for tougher curbs on
household recycling come just weeks after the Government scrapped its
plans to introduce a DRS....<<<Read More>>>...