Glass will be excluded from the proposed deposit return scheme (DRS) in England and Northern Ireland.

The Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) raised concerns over how glass would be collected under the scheme.

To replace the DRS, glass will be collected in the scope of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).

EPR will require producers to pay for the removal and treatment of glass packaging generated by households, as well as having targets for glass recycling.

British Glass CEO Dave Dalton has supported the decision.

Mr Dalton said: “British Glass welcomes the decision by DEFRA and the Northern Ireland Executive to keep glass out of the proposed deposit return scheme in England and Northern Ireland. Ensuring that glass is recycled through an effective kerbside system, coupled with the introduction of extended producer responsibility, is absolutely the right way to improve glass recycling rates and reduce carbon emissions.

“We very much look forward to working with government to make extended producer responsibility a success for glass packaging, helping to meet the UK’s rightly ambitious environmental targets.”