Trade Body welcomes extension to reduced fuel duty

WATA has welcomed news that the Government has extended the reduced tax rate for petrol and diesel until December 2026.

The Government has also announced a 12-month moratorium on Vehicle Excise Duty for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs), allowing eligible operators to pay just £1 at renewal. The move is expected to save hauliers between £600 and £900 per vehicle on road tax, depending on the vehicle.

In March this year WATA called on the Government to step in with aid measures to help the waste and recycling sector against escalating fuel costs caused by the war in Iran.

Andy Hill, CEO of WATA said: “This is good news for our sector which was really beginning to feel the pinch of rising fuel costs.

“Suspending the fuel duty rise until the end of the year will help enormously but we still need to keep an eye on the bigger picture. WATA members and the wider waste and recycling industry is coming under increasing financial pressures from all corners. And without the sector running smoothly we risk stockpiles of waste building up and energy supply being affected, as well as the supply of aggregates to key markets such as construction being placed at risk.”

WATA represents companies operating in the washed recycled aggregates sector. The sector washes and recycles an estimated  20.5 million tonnes of construction, demolition and excavation waste (CDEW) annually, producing:

• Circa 8-9 million tonnes each of cleaned and sized sand, and 2-4 million tonnes fine mineral material
• >95% of washed waste soils does not go to landfill
• >80% by weight of waste soils is washed and reused

WATA members generate carbon savings of more than 23,000 tonnes a year, a figure which is growing.