Simon Colvin, partner and head of the environment team at Weightmans, said that the circular economy package would have been a huge opportunity over the next 5-15 years, speaking at an IEMA webinar on the implications of 'vote leave' for environmental law and practice. "It's so all-encompassing in terms of the products we use and the waste we generate it was going to catalyse so many things in so many areas. And that's just gone now really, in one fell swoop." he said.
The UK Government have taken the view that nothing needs to be done about waste, as there was such a proactive approach at EU Level, he added. "Now that's gone, it leaves a massive hole and that needs to be addressed pretty quickly. We need new incentives for waste, those sort of things can't wait three years for the Government to get their heads around them. If we wait then we're adding problems into the system further down the line." He warned.
Speaking about the process of withdrawing from the EU, Colvin warned that the two-year timeline imposed by Article 50 for negotiating a deal was very tight. "Article 50 is designed to deter people from leaving, not to facilitate it. That would suggest it's going to be quite difficult to work our way through it. Environmental practitioners should not expect any changes to legislation for at least two and a half years. There will not be any material changes to UK legislation until the future of trading relations had been agreed because new laws would be required to meet the trading frameworks."
Emergency legislation is expected in the 'very near future' about the status of existing EU legislation in the UK he said. "Without that there's not enough certainty for regulators and businesses to operate."
When asked if he believed that environmental precautions would be watered down in the UK once it leaves the EU, Colvin believes that there is a real risk. Adding, "As a result of the recession, we saw environmental considerations fall to the back of the queue. The Government only has so much time and capacity to deal with issues, and they're going to focus on economy and trade. The profession as a group will have to try to police that."
In theory, the UK could increase environmental protections beyond that required by EU law, though the likely outcome was bigger differences between the devolved nations, he added. Wales and Scotland had moved ahead of England on environmental protection, largely because the English approach was to go only as far as what is required by EU law. "England is bumping along the bottom of the EU baseline and if that goes, it may fall even further behind." He argued.
Despite the uncertainty, there are ways that businesses can begin to prepare for the changes ahead, Colvin said. These include consideration of:
