Glass in deposit return scheme ‘could push up drink prices by 50p’

William Watkins, chief executive of Radnor Hills, described the current situation in Wales as a “complete and utter mess”, warning that differences between systems on either side of the England–Wales border would create major difficulties for producers.

“We have to have a system which is the same on both sides of the border,” he said.

Watkins warned that Wales accounted for a small share of the wider UK drinks market, meaning some companies could decide it was “simply not worth” supplying certain products.

Ahead of the Senedd election, Plaid Cymru’s manifesto said it would press ahead with “including glass when this becomes practically feasible” in the deposit return scheme.

Watkins said he had hoped for “a complete change in direction” but claimed that the “realities of coming into power and coming up against some very entrenched views” in the civil service had meant the new government was continuing the previous administration’s agenda.

BBC Wales asked the new Plaid Cymru minister responsible, Llyr Gruffydd, for an interview but he declined.

Both the BSDA and drinks firms said ministers faced a tight deadline to act, warning there were only “weeks” left to appoint a deposit management organisation (DMO) if Wales is to launch a scheme alongside the rest of the UK by 1 October 2027.

Only one organisation, Exchange for Change, is known to have applied to be the DMO in Wales. It is already contracted to run the schemes in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The window for applications closed on 2 June but no decision has yet been made.

While the Welsh government is understood to require 3,500 reverse vending machines to handle glass at the outset of the DRS scheme in Wales, the proposal from Exchange for Change is to launch with 100 suitable machines around the country. Those with knowledge of the discussions said this was a key sticking point.

Bagnall said there was now “no time left” to design a separate Welsh system from scratch, which is the fall-back option within the regulations if a DMO cannot be appointed.

“We need decisions in the next few weeks if we’re to have any realistic chance of getting a scheme up and running by October 2027,” he said.