Single-Use Disposable Cups Charge Advisory Group minutes: 7 August 2024

Attendees and apologies

• Gayle Barclay (Highlands and Islands Airports Limited) 
• Diana Doonan(Scotland Excel)
• Greg Douglas (Food Standards Scotland)
• Catherine Gemmell (Marine Conservation Society on behalf of Scottish Environment Link)
• Kathryn Gill (Consumer Scotland)
• Magdalena Golebiewska (EasyJet, representing all airlines) 
• Ylva Haglund (Scottish Wholesale Association)
• Loraine Hartley (NHS National Services Scotland)
• Martin Kersh (Foodservice Packaging Association)
• David Llewellyn and Adrian Pratt (The Vending & Automated Retail Association)
• Victoria Manson (Federation of Small Businesses)
• Luke McGarty (Scottish Grocer’s Federation)
• Andrew Opie (British Retail Consortium)
• Graeme Paton (Trading Standards)
• Aidan Smith (Scottish Grocer’s Federation)
• Leon Thompson (UK Hospitality Scotland)
• Paul Togneri (Scottish Beer & Pub Association)
• Paul Wallace (Keep Scotland Beautiful)
• Neil Whittall (Paper Cup Recycling and Recovery Group)
• Colin Wilkinson (Scottish Licensed Trade Association)
• Miriam Adcock, David Barnes, Andreea Bocioaga, Catherine Bozec, Andrew Pankhurst (all Zero Waste Scotland)
• Janet McVea, Tim Chant, Julia Muszynski (all Scottish Government)

Items and actions

Welcome and apologies

The Chair (JM) welcomed the group to the seventh meeting of the advisory group. JM introduced Tim Chant (SG) , who has recently joined the Waste Prevention: Reduce and Reuse Unit, and is working alongside Janet, Anne Dagg and Shaun Taylor.

Circular Economy Bill update (SG)

Purpose of item:

• to update the Group on the passage of the Bill through the Scottish Parliament and what this means for the cups charge

Janet McVea and Tim Chant (Scottish Government) noted that:

• the Circular Economy Bill has passed through Scottish Parliament and is expected to be granted Royal Assent shortly
• the Bill gives Scottish Minister the power to require suppliers to charge a minimum amount for specified single-use items 
• it is intended that the first use of the power will be to introduce a minimum charge on single-use beverage cups
• proposed amendments relating to what materials might be in scope or subject to exemptions were rejected during parliamentary debates
• the Bill provides the framework for future secondary legislation using these powers and Ministers and officials will work closely with stakeholders to develop that legislation

Brief discussion included confirmation that questions such as what types of single-use cup and what materials would be in scope of the planned charge would be answered by ongoing engagement, such as the upcoming consultation.

Timeline for implementation of the charge (SG) 

Purpose of item: 

• to share high level timeline for implementation of the planned charge on single-use drinks cups

Tim Chant (Scottish Government) gave a short presentation on the current timeline for implementing the charge.

Key milestones, based on current planning assumptions, include:

• consultation and interim impact assessments launch (Aug 2024)
• stakeholder engagement to finalise proposals for the charge (2024 – 25)
• regulations drafted and subject to Scottish Parliament super-affirmative procedure (2025)
• work with stakeholders to determine a coming into force date (post 2025)

TC:

• noted the upcoming launch of the public consultation, subject to final approval from Ministers
• encouraged all members to engage as fully as possible with the process and continue to work with Scottish Government to develop the most effective legislation possible
• noted that Parliamentary procedures will be following the super-affirmative procedure approach which is the highest level of parliamentary scrutiny and will also give stakeholders an additional opportunity to respond to draft legislation
• the upcoming consultation is not the end of stakeholder engagement, it marks the beginning of the next phase. Scottish Government’s intention is to progress further detailed engagement on key issues
• although the legislation will be made in 2025, this does not mean the charge will come into force then. Further work will be undertaken with stakeholders to determine the most appropriate coming into force date

Discussion points on this item included:

• the consultation will run for 12 weeks
• the Net Zero committee led on the development of the Circular Economy Bill and a record of their consultation, engagement and findings are available on the Scottish Parliament website

Public consultation and stakeholder engagement (SG) 

Purpose of item: 
To raise awareness of the launch of the consultation and encourage participation from the group and their wider stakeholder networks. 

TC opened the discussion by reiterating that the content of the public consultation has been shaped by discussions with the group and this is an opportunity to continue those discussions here today and throughout the consultation period. Further engagement throughout this period will enable Scottish Government to further develop policy proposals.

TC provided a brief overview of draft consultation proposals. Key points included:

• previous feedback on the scope of and approach to the charge has been taken into account as much as possible
• proposals are designed to reduce consumption of single-use beverage cups as much as possible and therefore the proposed scope includes all suppliers of drinks in single-use cups and all types of single-use cups, with targeted exemptions
• it is proposed that the charge will apply when a drink in single-use cup is bought by a consumer; and that the charge will be subject to VAT 
• proposed exemptions are informed by previous discussions and Scottish Government welcomes feedback on them

Points raised by Advisory Group members in discussion included:

• administrative costs for businesses could be significant depending on the approach taken to the charge e.g. if there were reporting requirements included in the final legislation. The consultation period is a chance to work with Scottish Government on this point.
• the coming into force date needs to be considered alongside the impact of other new regulatory requirements e.g. packaging extended producer responsibility changes
• a flat charge would be a proportionally higher additional cost when paid alongside a cheaper drink compared to a more expensive one
• how the charge interacts with other regulatory requirements should be considered

AoB and close

The Chair noted the important role that Advisory Group members will continue to have in continuing to inform final policy proposals, thanked everyone for their attendance and advised that the next meeting will take place towards the end of the consultation period when interim findings and next steps can be discussed.  

Further detailed engagement will also take place on key issues during the consultation period. JM invited Advisory Group members to highlight any initial comments or queries ahead of the next meeting and asked members to raise awareness of the public consultation, once published, within their networks.