Electronic Equipment: Waste Disposal

Mr. Burstow
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what representations his Department has received on the effect of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive on business costs; what his latest estimate is of those costs; how many businesses met the deadline for compliance with the Directive’s provisions in the UK; how many fines have been imposed for failure to comply; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson
The Department has regular discussions with a range of stakeholders on the impact of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE) in the UK. These discussions have included the costs incurred by business. A full Regulatory Impact Assessment was published alongside the UK WEEE Regulations 2006.

Under the UK WEEE Regulations all producers of Electrical and Electronic Equipment have an obligation to register with a Producer Compliance Scheme (PCS) to discharge their obligation. 4,348 producers were registered with PCSs for the 2007 compliance period. This has risen to 5,190 for the 2008 compliance period. All PCSs met their obligations on behalf of their producer members for the 2007 compliance period. No fines have been imposed for failure to comply.

Mrs. Maria Miller
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what recent assessment has been made of levels of compliance with the provisions of the EU Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive.

Ian Pearson
The responsibility for enforcement and on-going monitoring of compliance under the UK Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations lies with the Environment Agency (England and Wales), the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), and the Department of the Environment in Northern Ireland. All producer compliance schemes discharged their members obligations for the 2007 compliance period.

Mr. Burstow
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will estimate the cost of introducing a de minimis rule in relation to business compliance with the requirements of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive.

Ian Pearson
There is currently no scope to offer a de minimis in relation to business compliance within the requirements of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE).