Deposit and Return Scheme for Scotland Regulations 2020 (as amended): equality impact assessment
Equality impact assessment (EQIA) for The Deposit and Return Scheme for Scotland Regulations 2020 (as amended by the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for Scotland Amendment Regulations 2025) and the Deposit and Return Scheme for Scotland (Designation of Scheme Administrator) Order 2025.
Key Findings
40. A limited number of impacts have been continuously identified throughout the iterative EQIA process from the initial interim EQIA in 2018. These have been discussed and addressed in-depth in the previous EQIA iterations.
41. As part of this EQIA, some negative impacts have been identified by the amendments being made to existing DRS policy, on the following protected characteristics: disability and age.
42. In particular, the removal of the obligation for some larger retailers to provide online takeback is likely to impact on disabled and older individuals, including those who may rely on online food deliveries.
43. Other factors investigated in relation to the additional protected characteristics do not appear, at this stage, to raise significant equality-related issues. This may be due to a lack of available published information and the individual circumstances of those impacted. The Scottish Government will continue stakeholder engagement with relevant representative groups, as DRS policy progresses to ensure we are informed of any unforeseen impacts.
44. In addition to the impacts considered, it is important to note that the protected characteristics considered within this EQIA are not independent of each other. Some people may have to deal with complex and interconnected issues.