BPF comments on the draft climate change bill

The BPF welcomes the draft climate change bill released by the Government on Tuesday 13th March. The Federation, in principal, supports measures to cut carbon emissions created by the UK. However, measures taken must be realistic, robust and prevent the UK economy from

Members report mixed views on the prospects for the next 12 months, with some marginally more optimistic due to falling energy prices, and reasonable business volumes, whilst others report declining order books and severe pressure on selling prices. The strength of Sterling, a 5½ year high for interest rates and an above EU average inflation rate put further strain on the associations’ members.

The excessive, cumulative regulatory burden on UK companies currently stands at a punitive £55.6bn for British business according to figures by The British Chamber of Commerce. In 2006 the PM announced that Whitehall would cut the cost of compliance with its rules by 25% by 2010, the latest of many pledges, yet nothing appears to have reduced the burden on companies. The associations strongly urge the Government to appoint a De-regulation Minister to guarantee that tough deregulation targets are met annually.

Energy and taxation continue to be decisive factors to the associations’ members. Since October 2006 members have experienced energy price increases of 20%, whilst the price of wholesale gas continues to fall: the associations expect to see considerable reductions in the near future. Fortunately, due to the mild winter the lack of UK energy supplies has not been exposed. However, the lack of gas storage, nuclear capacity and energy from waste must be increased to avoid future damage to the economy.

The letter also urges the Chancellor to revoke the increase in the Climate Change Levy

Public Sector spending is at its highest rate since the 1970’s, 45.3% of the total UK economy in 2007 and a net public sector borrowing requirement of £39.7bn. The associations urge the Chancellor not to resort to higher taxation on wealth creating business to fill the void.

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For further information on this press release, please contact Thom Lant, British Plastics Federation, 6 Bath Place, Rivington Street, London, EC2A 3JE, tel 020 7457 5032, fax 020 7457 5001, email: [email protected]

Notes for editors

1) British Plastics Federation (BPF) is the UK trade association for the plastics industry – representing the whole supply chain including polymer producers, distributors, additives suppliers, machinery manufacturers, processors and recyclers.