Petition · past parliament

Stop sending plastic waste abroad & increase the UK's plastic recycling capacity

Rejected 17 signatures

What the petition asks

The UK needs to stop sending recyclable plastic waste abroad, increase its plastic recycling capacity & take responsibility for the amount of (often unnecessary) plastic it generates. Investments should be made into constructing more plastic recycling plants in the UK.
Tens of thousands of tonnes of plastic waste from the UK is sent abroad to countries such as Turkey. These countries do not have the capacity to recycle their own waste. So much of the UK's recyclable plastic waste is being dumped or burnt. This is not good enough. Increasing the UK's plastic recycling capacity would reduce our carbon emissions & reduce habitats across the world from being destroyed by the accumulation of non-biodegradable plastic.

Why it was rejected

There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.

You may wish to sign this petition which calls for the same action: Make it Mandatory for the UK to recycle it's own waste in the UK

Timeline

28 Jun 2020 Petition opened for signatures
9 Sep 2020 Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 17
Status Rejected
Rejected 9 Sep 2020

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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.