The government will ask people to put fewer items into recycling bins as it plans to cut back on contamination from improperly prepared or non-recyclable objects, according to reports.
It is part of a plan to tackle “wishcycling” – where people put items they hope are recyclable into the relevant container, but their good intention potentially ruins a batch of waste for processing.
Items commonly thought to be recyclable include greasy pizza boxes, bioplastics, used paper towels and unwashed food containers.
According to the i newspaper, the new guidance will be laid out to clarify what can and cannot go into kerbside bins.
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A consultation was launched in 2021 by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) on how to improve the consistency of recycling in both homes and businesses.
It is in response to this that ministers are expected to announce a crackdown on “wishcycling” later this year, while councils and packaging companies will also be given new instructions to help with collections and labelling.
The aim will be to increase the proportion of waste that is successfully recycled by excluding contaminants and non-recyclable items.
For example, according to packaging company Takeaway Packaging, including a greasy pizza box in cardboard or paper recycling has the potential to ruin a whole batch later on in the process.
The objects get mulched and mixed with chemicals to remove inks and glues, but oil and grease mix into the “slurry” and “it’s no longer possible to separate oil from paper fibres”.
There have even been reports of refuse collectors being told to not accept greasy cardboard containers if they are put in recycling bins.
Items which cannot be recycled
Greasy food boxes
Kitchen roll
Disposable coffee cups
Crisp packets
Food pouches
Mirrors
Toothpaste tubes
Polystyrene
Lightbulbs
Plastic bags
Bioplastics
A Defra spokesman said: “We want to make waste and recycling collections simpler and more convenient for homeowners, including by preventing food waste from contaminating recyclable materials.
“This forms part of our drive to increase recycling rates, reducing the impact on our environment and contributing to our net zero ambitions.
“We have held a public consultation on the proposed changes and will announce further details shortly.”
The Local Government Association has called for extra funding to manage the new rules expected to be introduced for councils.
A spokesman told the i: “Every neighbourhood is different and councils need flexibility in how they meet these ambitions in communities. What works for a rural village, for example, will not be the same for a tower block.
“Longer term, we look forward to working with government, packaging producers, the waste industry and communities in reducing waste and safeguarding our environment.”
A child has died and another has been injured after a car was driven on to a sports pitch in Cumbria.
Police say they were called at 4.58pm to reports of a collision involving a BMW i40 and two children on a pitch at Kendal Rugby Union Football Club on Shap Road, in Kendal.
Cumbria Police say one child died, while the second is being treated by paramedics.
A man aged in his 40s has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.
A spokesperson for Cumbria Police said: “Specialist investigators are at the scene and the area has been cordoned off as initial investigation enquiries take place.”
The force said the incident was not believed to be terror-related. Immediate family members of both children have been informed, it added.
In a post on its Facebook page, the club said it was “deeply saddened to confirm that an incident occurred today at Kendal Rugby Club.”
The post, attributed to club chairman Dr Stephen Green, continued: “Our thoughts are with their family and friends and we kindly ask for privacy for all involved at this difficult time.”
The club and its facilities are now temporarily closed while it cooperates “fully” with authorities, it added.
Tim Farron MP, whose constituency includes Kendal, posted on X: “This is devastating, utterly heartbreaking news. I’m praying for the children and for their families and friends.
“Our community in Kendal is stunned and in mourning.”
A man has been convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China between 2019 and 2023.
Chinese PhD student Zhenhao Zou, 28, filmed nine of the attacks as “souvenirs”, and kept a trophy box of women’s belongings, jurors in his trial were told.
Warning: This article contains details of sexual offences
He was accused in court of drugging and raping three women in London and seven in China between 2019 and 2023.
Jurors at Inner London Crown Court found him guilty of 11 charges of rape against 10 women, including two who have been identified and another eight who have yet to be traced.
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The mechanical engineering student was also convicted of three counts of voyeurism, 10 of possession of an extreme pornographic image, one of false imprisonment and three of possession of a controlled drug with intent to commit a sexual offence, namely butanediol.
He was cleared of two further counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image and one of possession of MDMA with intent to commit a sexual offence.
Image: The trial heard Zou kept a ‘lost property box’ full of women’s belongings. Pic: Met Police
The jury has not reached verdicts on four counts of possession of drugs with intent to commit a sexual offence.
Zou – who first moved to Belfast in 2017 to study mechanical engineering at Queen’s University before moving to London in 2019 – showed no visible reaction as the verdicts were read out in court.
Catherine Farrelly KC, prosecuting, told jurors during the trial that Zou “presents as a smart and charming young man” but is “also a persistent sexual predator; a voyeur and a rapist”.
Image: A discreet camera belonging to Zou. Pic: Met Police
Zou, who also used the name Pakho online, befriended fellow Chinese students on WeChat and dating apps, before inviting them for drinks and drugging them at his flats in London or an unknown location in China, the court heard.
The jury heard how he would secretly film his attacks using a mobile device and hidden cameras, and was shown evidence found on SD cards at his accommodation of him raping unconscious women in London and in China.
Senior Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor Saira Pike thanked the “incredibly strong and brave” women who came forward to report his “heinous” crimes.
“Zou is a serial rapist and a danger to women,” she said.
“In some instances, we have not been able to identify Zou’s victims. Without knowing who these women are, we have not been able to support them through a deeply distressing period of time.
“We have always been determined to seek justice for both the unidentified and identified victims in this case.”
A British man has been jailed for 19 years after a Russian court found him guilty of fighting for Ukraine in the country’s Kursk region.
James Scott Rhys Anderson, 22, had been charged with terrorist and mercenary offences and was found guilty after a closed trial.
The court said he was to serve the first five years of his sentence in prison and the remainder in a penal colony.
In the trial, a Ukrainian soldier from the same unit was questioned as a witness.
Ukrainian troops broke across the border into Kursk region on 6 August last year.
They still hold some territory there seven months later, despite attempts by Russian forces to force them out.
Investigators accused Anderson of illegally crossing into Kursk in November as part of an armed group that committed unspecified “criminal acts against civilians”.
Russian state media published video showing him being led in handcuffs and locked in a cage of the kind where defendants in Russian court cases are placed.
It apparently showed Anderson saying he had served in the British army from 2019-2023 before deciding to join the foreign legion of Ukraine’s armed forces.
Early on in the war, Ukraine’s authorities said more than 20,000 people from 52 countries came to Ukraine’s aid.
Since then, the number of foreign fighters in Ukraine’s military has been classified.