Diolch, Llywydd. This year marks the twentieth anniversary of devolution in Wales and has served as an opportunity to reflect on the difference devolution has made. We should rightly be proud that the past two decades has seen us become a global leader when it comes to recycling. In 2017-18, we recycled 62.7 per cent of municipal waste, and are third in the world for household recycling. This is an incredible achievement, and we would not be where we are today without the hard work and dedication of citizens and communities across the country. But it’s not simply about reaching recycling rates. It’s because it’s the right thing to do for our environment, for our communities, and for our economy. We've come a long way, but we're not complacent and I wanted to take the opportunity of recycle week to set out some of the next steps to build on Wales’s recycling record.  

Our ambition for a zero-waste Wales is stronger than ever. Recycling and increasing resource efficiency is central to tackling climate change and our response to the climate emergency. It is also key to unlocking the benefits of a low-carbon economy. I am pleased to be taking forward work on business recycling this week with the publication of our consultation on proposed new regulations under the Environment (Wales) Act 2016. The regulations will mean that businesses must separate key materials for collection to be sent for recycling, in the same way we've been doing at home for years. The proposed materials include plastic, metal, paper, glass and food. The consultation also proposes a ban on business disposing of waste into sewers. I've said before and I will say again: the onus is on all of us to take action, from Government to grass roots and everything in between. It's about all of us playing our part, not simply for the benefit of the environment, but the economy too.

Many businesses are already doing their bit when it comes to managing waste in this way. Businesses more than any other sector already know that far from being a burden, waste is a key resource that can generate income and bring with it commercial opportunities. It can make supply chains more resilient and by keeping resources in use for longer, support a more circular economy where greater added value is kept here in Wales. This provides businesses and local authorities with a major opportunity in respect of the value of the material that's collected and the savings that can be made.

We've made much progress on materials that are easier to recycle, so we now need to go up a gear and capture waste that is currently harder to recycle. This is why we're building on our successful partnership with local authorities to put in place new facilities to recycle absorbent hygiene products such as nappies. 

I've met with many people and communities across the country and have been moved by the commitment, passion and enthusiasm around recycling and tackling waste. Nowhere is this more so than in schools, where from Ferndale to Rhyl, I have heard examples of young people taking action. The Zero Waste Schools initiative being piloted in Pembrokeshire and Cardiff is bringing together the third sector, local authorities and Keep Wales Tidy. The initiative develops practical recycling initiatives in schools, helping to educate children in line with the recommendations of the Donaldson report.

But there is still more to be done to raise awareness and persuade people to recycle more. We know that more than half the material still in residual waste is easily recyclable, and getting that out of black bins and into recycling would see Wales achieve a recycling rate of more than 80 per cent. This would not only reduce the cost of waste management services, it would also have significant carbon benefits. To address this, I will be bringing forward a national campaign on recycling to support local and regional campaigns.

I recognise that, recently, concerns have been raised regarding what happens to our residual waste and recycling once it is collected. In Wales, we have already been recognised as having high levels of transparency with the My Recycling Wales website allowing people to see what happens to our waste—95 per cent of which is not exported. Investing in additional infrastructure is key to moving to 100 per cent of material not being exported.

As a responsible nation, it's vital that we dispose of the waste that cannot be recycled properly. For this reason, we have invested in the infrastructure to extract electricity and heat from this material and dispose of it safely to the highest environmental standards. This ensures that we can extract the maximum benefit from this waste and prevent it from becoming a problem elsewhere.

The incineration of waste for heat and power is, however, a transitionary step. The long-term solution is to move away from materials like single-use and fossil fuel-derived plastics. Action on plastic pollution is high on the agenda and we will move to ban single-use plastic products, including cotton bud sticks, cutlery, plates, straws, stirrers, balloon sticks and cups. But alongside a ban, we are taking steps to ensure the responsibility for the end-of-life costs of materials is placed on producers based on the principle of the polluter pays. We're also working to introduce a deposit-return scheme in Wales on options to tax or charge certain products and with partners in local authorities and the private sector on initiatives to develop greater plastic reprocessing capacity.

Our goal is to ensure that we lay the foundations to go beyond recycling and bring the broader benefits to Wales of a move to a circular economy. In this way, getting it right on the environment means getting it right for the economy too. Earlier this year, I announced our £6.5 million circular economy fund. WRAP Cymru has now awarded the first capital grants under the fund. These grants, totalling £355,000, are going to three Welsh manufacturers to invest in equipment to increase the amount of recycled plastic and paper in their products. It's being matched by an investment of over £1.7 million from the businesses themselves.

Yesterday, we launched our consultation to increase business recycling, and later this year we will consult on a comprehensive new zero-waste strategy—a strategy that will review and reboot our ambition and actions for a zero-waste Wales. I want the new strategy to go beyond recycling by working to deliver our commitment to decarbonisation and a truly circular economy. This is crucial in the context of the climate crisis facing us and in developing the green industries and opportunities of the future.

We are absolutely committed to building on Wales's recycling record and the Welsh way on waste: reducing, reusing and recycling for a greener, stronger and fairer future.