Responsibility for waste and product-related regulations will move from the business (BIS) to the environment department (Defra) from 1 April.
The BIS environmental regulation team has responsibility for several regulations derived from EU directives that have producer responsibility objectives.
These include: the domestic waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) system, including running the distributor takeback scheme; regulating vehicle manufacturers and importers, and authorised treatment facilities for the end-of-life vehicles; policy development and monitoring for the regulation restricting the use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment; policy development for substance restrictions related to packaging; and placing on the market all batteries and accumulators, and the waste disposal regime for automotive and industrial batteries.
The team also oversees the enforcement of these regulations through contracts held with the Environment Agency, the National Measurement and Regulation Office (NMRO) and trading standards departments in local authorities. It will join Defra’s environmental quality directorate.
In joint statement, BIS and Defra said: ‘With much of the legislation and related work split between the two departments, transferring the team and resource will enable, and ensure, greater coordination of government policy and the combined regulatory responsibilities.’
The full list of regulations being transferred is:
- The Batteries and Accumulators (Placing on the Market) Regulations 2008 (SI 2008 No. 2164)
- The Batteries and Accumulators (Placing on the Market)(Amendment) Regulations 2012 (SI 2012 No. 1139)
- The Batteries and Accumulators (Placing on the Market)(Amendment) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015 No. 63)
- The End-of-Life Vehicles Regulations 2003 (SI 2003 No. 2635)
- The End-of-Life Vehicles (Producer Responsibility) Regulations 2005 (SI2005 No. 263)
- The End-of-Life Vehicles (Producer Responsibility)(Amendment) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010 No. 1095)
- The End-of-Life Vehicles (Amendment) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010 No. 1094)
- The Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015 No. 1640)
- The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012 (SI 2012 No. 3032)
- The Waste Batteries and Accumulators Regulations 2009 (SI 2009 No. 890) The Waste Batteries and Accumulators (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015 No. 1935)
- The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2013 (SI 2013 No. 3113)
- The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment and Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (Amendment) Regulations 2014 (SI 2014 No. 1771)
- The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015 No. 1968)
