| MP Takes Plastics Issue to Parliament |
| Monday, 31 March 2008 | |
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Southport's MP John Pugh used a speech in Parliament this week to raise the issue of how best to tackle one of the thorniest problems currently facing Britain's attempts to 'go green' - what to do with plastics.
The MP called for the Government to do more to help educate people as to what to do with their plastics; the familiar problem of "which plastic should go where" for example should theoretically be made easier by the fact that the type of plastic used in any container can be identified by a number within a triangle that's printed on the packaging - and yet the vast majority of people are simply unaware of this. Dr Pugh called for the Government to invest more money in raising awareness if such issues, as well as in providing the facilities that people need in order to be able to recycle effectively - as opposed to resorting to "knee-jerk fiscal reactions that try to solve every problem by placing a tax on it". "What to do with plastics is the next big challenge we face as we aim to make Britain greener" commented the MP. "From carrier bags to CDs, from food packaging to bin liners - plastics are everywhere, and at present nobody is helping the people of Southport work out what to do with them. Substantial investment in places like Hampshire has allowed the council to put in place a comprehensive system for the collection and processing of plastics - and yet once again this investment is missing in Merseyside and we have to put up with comparatively poor facilities as a result." Dr Pugh received assurances from Joan Ruddock, the DEFRA minister responsible for this issue, that the points he raised were being looked into, and praised Southport's MP for his interest. In the meantime Dr Pugh urged any local residents unsure as what to do with their plastics to get in touch with him with details of the problems they are encountering. "People in Southport have embraced recycling and the feeling I get from speaking to people is often that they're frustrated that they cant do more" said Dr Pugh. "There are initiatives focusing on problems like what to do with "junk" CDs and DVDs that come free with many Sunday papers - I'm hoping that we can raise awareness of these and also demonstrate that there's a desire amongst local people to make the most of them." "People want to recycle, but at the moment the Government isn't making it easy for them. I've raised this issue in Parliament before and will do so again: people deserve to see the effort they're making being matched by investment from Westminster." |