265
© The Author(s) 2016
R. Clift, A. Druckman (eds.), Taking Stock of Industrial Ecology,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-20571-7_13
Chapter 13
Circular Economy and the Policy Landscape
in the UK
Julie Hill
Abstract This chapter sets out the European policy origins of ‘circular economy’
thinking in the UK and discusses the extent to which the waste prevention plans
written by the four countries of the UK (to fulfi ll the EU requirement) start to move
the UK in the direction of more circular approaches. This is important for an understanding of what has driven UK action on this agenda. I argue that the ‘circular
economy’ has become an increasingly vigorous topic of debate in the UK. This has
been manifested mainly through interest and use of the language by leading companies, but more recently also through political interest in Scotland and Wales, resulting in diverging policies in the countries of the UK. Heightened political interest in
some parts of the UK has coincided with uncertainty about activity in the European
Commission. The chapter discusses some of the diffi culties in turning the concept
into policy prescriptions.
Keywords Circular economy • Waste prevention • Resource effi ciency • Resource
security • Resilience
1 Introduction
The circular economy debate in the UK has evolved over the last 3–4 decades from
a number of converging strands of thinking and activity, with their origins chiefl y in
Europe (Hill 2014 ). European Commission policy development on waste has been
one of the key strands. Academic institutions and think tanks, with support from
some leading businesses, have built on the foundations provided by European policy to raise awareness of the circular economy concept, but translating the aspirations into more progressive policies is a mixed picture among the four countries
comprising the UK.
J. Hill (*)
Senior Visiting Fellow, Centre for Environmental Strategy, University of Surrey and
Associate of Green Alliance , 36 , Buckingham Palace Road , SW1W 0RE London , UK
e-mail: jhill@green-alliance.org.uk
© The Author(s) 2016
R. Clift, A. Druckman (eds.), Taking Stock of Industrial Ecology,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-20571-7_13
Chapter 13
Circular Economy and the Policy Landscape
in the UK
Julie Hill
Abstract This chapter sets out the European policy origins of ‘circular economy’
thinking in the UK and discusses the extent to which the waste prevention plans
written by the four countries of the UK (to fulfi ll the EU requirement) start to move
the UK in the direction of more circular approaches. This is important for an understanding of what has driven UK action on this agenda. I argue that the ‘circular
economy’ has become an increasingly vigorous topic of debate in the UK. This has
been manifested mainly through interest and use of the language by leading companies, but more recently also through political interest in Scotland and Wales, resulting in diverging policies in the countries of the UK. Heightened political interest in
some parts of the UK has coincided with uncertainty about activity in the European
Commission. The chapter discusses some of the diffi culties in turning the concept
into policy prescriptions.
Keywords Circular economy • Waste prevention • Resource effi ciency • Resource
security • Resilience
1 Introduction
The circular economy debate in the UK has evolved over the last 3–4 decades from
a number of converging strands of thinking and activity, with their origins chiefl y in
Europe (Hill 2014 ). European Commission policy development on waste has been
one of the key strands. Academic institutions and think tanks, with support from
some leading businesses, have built on the foundations provided by European policy to raise awareness of the circular economy concept, but translating the aspirations into more progressive policies is a mixed picture among the four countries
comprising the UK.
J. Hill (*)
Senior Visiting Fellow, Centre for Environmental Strategy, University of Surrey and
Associate of Green Alliance , 36 , Buckingham Palace Road , SW1W 0RE London , UK
e-mail: jhill@green-alliance.org.uk