CONTENTS

politics first | Corridors
September / October 2016 | www.politicsfirst.org.uk
The circular economy: the Government
needs to step up to the plate
The Northern Powerhouse
is on the ascent
Kerry McCarthy, a member of the Environmental Audit Committee and
Labour MP for Bristol East
It came as a surprise to many of us to learn that just
one per cent of our takeaway coffee cups actually get
recycled – uncovered by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s
excellent “War on Waste”.
Andrea Jenkyns, Conservative MP for Morley and Outwood
The launch of the Northern Powerhouse solidified
David Cameron and George Osborne’s commitment to
addressing the historic neglect of the North from the last
Labour Government. For too long, our Northern cities
were allowed to stagnate, with productivity falling and
people trapped with few prospects and few opportunities
to better their lot in life.
Consumers increasingly expect businesses
to ensure that their packaging is recyclable,
and many feel they have been misled by coffee
chains into thinking this.
But currently, there are too few incentives for
producers to make their packaging recyclable,
leaving local councils and the taxpayer to foot
the bill. England stubbornly remains a “throwaway
society”, with litter levels hardly budging
in over a decade.
Rethinking the way we manage resources,
and moving towards a circular economy - which
reuses, recycles and remanufactures, making
the most of precious resources - is not only an
environmental necessity, but a real opportunity
for new businesses and jobs.
A major study from last year estimated
that a more ambitious policy programme
for the circular economy could deliver half a
million jobs (gross), with a net reduction in
unemployment of over 100,000 by 2030. That
potential for creating new jobs, especially in
lower to medium-skilled occupations, would
particularly benefit regions such as the West
Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber and the
North East - many of these communities voted
to leave the European Union and are suffering
from unemployment and skills shortages.
Without an ambitious policy programme
or waste strategy, the Government is not only
squandering those economic opportunities, but
failing to address some urgent challenges facing
the sector.
After years of flat-lining performance, English
recycling rates have fallen for the first time since
records began. There are problems with the
quality of recycling materials collected and too
many different recycling collection systems in
operation across the country, with investment in
infrastructure reportedly not great, and likely to
get worse.
Lots of our recyclable material is still
exported overseas, as the growth of recycling
infrastructure has failed to keep pace with the
quantity of recovered materials. And waste crime
is flourishing – exacerbated by some cashstrapped
local authorities having to close tips or
introduce charges for waste disposal.
Voices within the sector are becoming
increasingly vocal about this policy vacuum.
Many wonder why the former Environment
Minister, Rory Stewart, was still in “listening
mode” a year after his appointment.
And now the impact of Brexit is causing real
worries in a sector where EU legislation has
been a key driver over the past two decades,
providing long-term planning for investment in
waste infrastructure and innovation. It is now
uncertain if the UK will implement the European
Commission’s Circular Economy package: an
important package of measures that will shape
EU progress and set a level playing field in this
sector for the next decade.
Experts are hoping that Brexit could be the
shock the UK needs to take resource policy more
seriously.
But I have real worries that with Andrea
Leadsom now at the helm - a Brexiteer who
argued that a vote to leave would allow the UK
to “reduce burdensome EU red-tape” – DEFRA
will seek to reduce what she sees as burdens
on business, from recycling targets to producer
responsibility requirements.
The Government’s ideological aversion to
regulation risks hamstringing progress towards
a more circular economy. The UK should
be leading from the front when it comes to
regulation which protects our environment, and
creates the conditions for new businesses to
enter the market and for established companies
to invest for the long-term.
While unnecessary regulations or burdens
on business should be removed, we know that
good regulation – from the landfill tax to the
Climate Change Act – can create the conditions
for new businesses to enter the market, and for
established companies to invest for the longterm.
In Wales, Labour in government has
demonstrated how ambitious thinking and
political commitment can drive progress and
boost growth and jobs, how intelligent regulation
sends the right signals to business and can
shape markets of the future. With a much
stronger policy platform, it has already met the
EU’s 2020 household recycling target, not only
leading the other UK nations but making it fourth
in Europe.
We now need the UK Government to step up
to the mark, too.
To correspond with the policy, we saw the
creation of a specific Northern Powerhouse
portfolio, supported across Government, to
deliver on the Government’s aims. Under the
leadership of the previous Minister, James
Wharton, the project has grown from strength
to strength.
I am delighted that the Prime Minister
has appointed Andrew Percy to the Northern
Powerhouse brief in the Department for
Communities and Local Government. Andrew
is a committed, experienced campaigner who,
I have no doubt, will be a superb minister and I
look forward to supporting him however I can.
I also welcome that reaffirmation in support
for the Northern Powerhouse from the new
Prime Minister, alongside her commitment to
a country that works for all.
The project has already starting
delivering real results across the North,
and has begun to rebalance the country’s
economy that has so often been skewed in
favour of the South East. That rebalancing is
taking place across every sector and every
region, from tech and digital to tourism and
transport, opening up our Northern towns and
cities to new investment and new possibilities.
In transport, we have in place new
franchises for the Northern and TransPennine
rail routes, which are going to bring hundreds
of brand new carriages, electrification and
increased capacity across the network. With
£13 billion of extra investment going into
transport, and the creation of Transport for the
North with its own £300 million of funding and
underpinned by statute, the North’s creaking,
long-neglected transport infrastructure
is finally going to receive the injection it
needs to bring it up-to-date with the latest
technology. There will also be new High
Speed rail links and £400 million to support
small and medium-sized enterprises who will
take advantage of those developments.
The Government is also working with
us local MPs to bring the improvements to
our own areas. In my constituency, Morley
Station has been historically neglected, and
we are now in the farcical situation where
disabled access is only possible to one
platform. I am delighted that the previous
Rail Minister acknowledged those failings
and I am committed to working with the
Government to address them; this is the story
across our region.
Of course, real change cannot be entirely
driven centrally from Westminster. We need
decisions to be being taken as close as
possible to the people we elect, something I
campaigned for in the European Referendum
and something that has been spearheaded by
the Northern Powerhouse. By promising to
create elected mayors with stronger powers,
we can ensure that local decision-making is
powerful, effective and accountable.
Already, five devolution deals have been
agreed in areas like Greater Manchester,
Sheffield and the North East - and more are
on the way. The deals which have been struck
already cover 54 per cent of the North and
will be backed by £4 billion of extra funding
- a game changer. That is a historic shift in
the governance of regions and cities and will
ensure that we have stronger, more resilient
local economies. There has also already
been £2.8 billion worth of investment in new
Growth Deals, with more on the horizon.
The vote to leave the European Union
also brings with it new possibilities. With
the new Department for International Trade
set to take the message around the world
that Britain is open for business, there is
a myriad of opportunities for more foreign
direct investment into the North. A £24
billion pitch-book of potential foreign direct
investments is already in place, and the
Government has committed £15 million to
support more trade missions to support the
North. The Northern Powerhouse will ensure
the North is at the forefront to take advantage
of the opportunities that Brexit offers and will
be key to ensuring Brexit is a success.
As a Northern MP, I am proud to be part of
a Government that is committed to the North,
and this Government has done more than ever
to ensure that it has the best opportunities to
succeed.
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