Companies hit out at recycling costs

British manufacturers of electrical domestic appliances say that UK government plans to implement the European Union's Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive could cost them more than their annual profits. The UK already faces fines for being late in implementing the Directive, but the government still has to finalise how the cost of recycling waste is to be paid for. The government has already rejected the 'visible fee' system used in many other Member States whereby a consumer buying a new appliance pays a mandatory fee at the time of purchase.