UK delays WEEE proposals yet again
Government's green image takes another battering
by Ken Young, Vnunet.com
16 December 2005 – The UK energy minister Malcolm Wicks has issued a statement admitting that the UK's implementation of the European Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive will be delayed yet again to allow the government to review progress on the implementation.
Despite missing the European Commission deadline, Wicks said that the government is taking the right steps to meet its commitments.
"We have listened to the concerns expressed by the business community and other stakeholders over the implementation process and have decided that more time is needed to get the implementation right," he said.
"Although any further delay is regrettable, this will ultimately deliver far greater environmental benefits."
The directive was originally meant to become law in the UK in August this year, but the DTI announced in March that it would be delayed until January 2006. The department then announced in August that the legislation would be delayed until at least June 2006.
The European Commission said in July that it was taking legal action against Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Poland and the UK. All eight countries have yet to enact the WEEE directive into national law.
WEEE is designed to ensure that manufacturers and consumers of technology are more responsible for its collection and disposal.
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