DBT UNVEILS NEW ‘HELP TO GROW’ SITE TO SUPPORT BUSINESSES AND GROW THE ECONOMY

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has unveiled a new centralised website, targeted at helping the UK’s 5.5 million businesses.

we need to gather information from businesses that will be affected. This data will provide the basis for establishing the packaging waste management fees individual producers will pay in 2024, when pEPR comes into force.

We are engaging with businesses and local authorities to shape the future vision of waste reforms through industry-wide sprint events, deep dive sessions and fortnightly forums. This will help ensure business readiness for our planned reforms from 2024, ensuring industry are involved in shaping the long-term future of EPR.

duced in England from October 2023.

We have also announced further details on the implementation of our Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers to boost recycling and clamp down on plastic pollution and litter.

The new ‘Help to Grow’ site from DBT is aimed at upskilling both big and small businesses across the country by helping them to:

• Learn new skills

• Reach more customers

• Boost business profits

Business and Trade Minister Kevin Hollinrake MP said: costs away from the taxpayer and supporting our work to protect the environment from the scourge of waste.

Deep Sagar, chair of the Advisory Committee on Packaging, said: Packaging materials that are not recycled back into new packaging harm our natural environment. Councils have to spend more managing that waste and the public cannot enjoy spaces such as parks and high streets as they should.

Extended Producer Responsibility will reduce that waste. It will make goods producers pay for collection of all packaging waste encouraging them to reduce or recycle more packaging. I look forward to supporting government and industry in making this smart policy work for the public and improving the environment.

Claire Shrewsbury, Director of Insights and Innovation at the Waste and Resources Ac- tion Programme, said: The introduction of an EPR for packaging could be a gamechanger. If done effectively, it could reduce the impact packaging has on the environment by regulating material use and increasing recycling. For EPR to work it must serve all – producers, local and central government, recyclers, and the public. We’ve been working with these key groups since 2018 to help collaboration on pEPR.

In 2020, 12 million tonnes of packaging was placed on the UK market, some of which contains plastics that are hard to recycle. Incentivising producers to use better, more recyclable materials will help to stem this tide of waste.

Producers will be required to pay an EPR fee towards the costs of collecting and managing household packaging waste, currently borne by local authorities. This shift of cost is estimat- ed to be around £1.2 billion per year across all local authorities, once EPR is fully operational. Before decisions are made about the final shape of the scheme,

These plans build on our wider efforts to eliminate avoidable plastic waste. Earlier this year we announced that a ban on single-use plastic plates, trays, bowls, cutlery, balloon sticks, expanded and extruded polystyrene food and drinks containers, including cups, will be intro-

We have already introduced a ban on microbeads in rinse-off personal care products, restrictions on the supply of single-use plastic straws, drink stirrers and cotton buds, and our worldleading Plastic Packaging Tax introduced last year. Meanwhile, our single-use plastic carrier bag charge has successfully cut sales by over 97% in the main supermarkets. For further information, please see our specific guidance on collecting data for packaging EPR, along with our wider guidance for industry on GOV.UK.

Businesses have told us that they need easy to find information from the Government, which is why this centralised page will make it simpler for firms to find, access and use the information and support they need in one central space. This site also brings together the wealth of expertise that the newly formed department has to offer.

DBT and the UK Government is committed to growing the economy, as the Prime Minister outlined in his priorities for 2023, which is why this new website will be a pivotal tool to help firms reach their business ambitions, whether that’s learning new digital skills, learning to export globally and courses in effective management.

‘Help to Grow,’ which is now live for use, is targeted at helping firms especially the UK’s 5.4 million small businesses that drive the economy and is a unique proposition stemming from the newlycreated department, taking businesses from start-ups, to scaling-up and then exporting their goods and services across the globe. The website will offer support and guidance every step of the way, helping to unlock global markets for British businesses.

When businesses are given the right tools to grow, it boosts profits, increases well-paid jobs and lifts the whole UK economy. This Government is committed to supporting small businesses and the selfemployed who are at the heart of our communities.

The centralised site will enable more businesses to reach their trading ambitions, by boosting exports in our race to £1 trillion a year, increasing inward investment and removing business trade barriers.

The ‘Help to Grow’ website will offer advice, guidance, services and support from the UK Government –bringing together a range of support and help that already exists across Government websites.

DBT will be continuously updating and improving ‘Help to Grow’ by working across Government as well as listening to the business community and their feedback.

So, I am pleased to launch the ‘Help to Grow’ website today, which will hopefully become a vital tool in helping businesses to thrive and succeed both in the UK and trading across the world.