The EU has raised €7.2 billion in 2023 from the new tax on non-recycled plastic packaging. The new rate was introduced in 2021 to help improve the environment, but also to raise additional revenue for the reimbursement of the recovery and resilience mechanism that financed the exit from the pandemic crisis. However, the EU Court of Auditors found flaws in the “comparability and reliability” of the data collected by the European Commission, as well as a slow implementation of the tax figure.
The €7.2 billion generated by the tax on non-recycled plastic packaging represented 4% of the total EU budget in 2023, funded mainly by direct contributions from EU countries from their gross national income (which amounted to €97.7 billion that year), customs duties (€22.1 billion) and contributions based on VAT collected by Member States (€22.5 billion).
The new tax began to be applied in the EU in 2021 to address extraordinary expenses related to the pandemic and is the first change in EU funding in decades. It also aimed to encourage the reduction of single-use plastic consumption, promote recycling and promote the circular economy.
The implementation of this rate has not been without problems. EU auditors point out that countries “were not sufficiently prepared” for the introduction of a new own resource. In fact, when the directive came into force, only five member states had adapted their legislation and 22 infringement procedures had been initiated.
“In the first year of application, the planned own resource based on plastic had a collection deficit of €1.1 billion and had to be offset by contributions based on gross national income to balance the EU budget,” the report published on Monday said.
In the case of Spain, the tax came into force on January 1, 2023 after being approved by the Law on Waste and Contaminated Soils for a Circular Economy, in 2022. Despite complaints from a large consumer, it began just before being applied (given that it affects companies), it was a fundraising success in 2023.
According to the auditors’ data, in 2021, 1,770.6 million kilos of plastic packaging waste were generated in Spain, of which 808.4 million were recycled. The recycling rate thus stands at 46%, slightly higher than the European average (41%). Bulgaria and Slovakia lead with a recycling rate above 60%, while at the bottom are Malta (21%), France and Denmark (both with 23%).
Among the shortcomings highlighted by the auditors are “the different collection methods” in the Member States. “Due to the lack of adequate controls, there is a high risk that some plastic packaging waste is not actually recycled,” the Court of Auditors said, urging the European Commission to improve control systems.
Likewise, the auditors highlight the flaws in the calculation of estimates for plastic packaging. “The majority of Member States (22) anticipated a lower amount than that calculated with the final data. In nine Member States, the discrepancy with the figures in the annual declarations was 25% or more, and in two cases it exceeded 50%,” says the report, which highlights that Spain anticipated 766 million kilos and that they finally amounted to 962 million.
The auditors also echo the criminal activities detected in the waste sector, such as the network trafficking waste from France that ended up in a landfill in Spain (over 30,000 tonnes) and which was dismantled in a joint operation by the authorities of both countries in 2022. In Romania, a gang was also identified that declared fictitious waste as recycled to obtain financial benefits. “The group presented false invoices to demonstrate that the waste had been sold or delivered to various recycling companies or collectors,” the text explains.
