The government has admitted that it is unable to make
the European Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment directive
(WEEE) law.
This latest delay will once again leave IT and electronics users
and suppliers in limbo.
UK energy minister Malcolm Wicks has said the government is
planning a new consultation on the legislation, even though it
completed an extensive discussion process two years ago.
The directive was supposed to become law in August, with a
system in place to make sure used PCs, peripherals and other
electronic items were recycled.
However, before August the Department of Trade and Industry
announced WEEE would be delayed until January 2006. Then at the end
of the summer it said the UK would not be ready until at least June
2006.
There is now no official timeframe for implementation. Wicks
said government departments would now be working together to
introduce draft regulations next spring. The consultation time on
these draft guidelines has not been announced.
Companies including Hewlett-Packard and Dell have spent
considerable time and resources preparing to meet the previous
draft guidelines and may now have to change their plans
substantially to keep their manufacturing and supply business
compliant.
Countries that do not comply with directives and make them law
risk being fined by the European Commission.
The UK is already running this threat, but is not alone, as the
Commission has already said it is taking legal action against
France, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Italy, Malta, Poland and the UK
for not implementing WEEE.