ECR MEPs have warned that implementing the EU’s new packaging rules creates fresh barriers within the Single Market, adding complexity and costs for businesses instead of providing the clear, harmonised framework they need.
Speaking in a debate on the impact of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation on SMEs, ECR members expressed support for the objectives of stronger recycling and reduced packaging waste. However, they called for simpler rules and greater legal certainty. They emphasised that the high obligations could particularly affect smaller companies and warned that the Single Market itself could be greatly impaired.
Italian ECR MEP Pietro Fiocchi said that inconsistencies between EU rules and national definitions are already hampering the movement of recycled materials across Europe.
“Last week, I visited a lithium recycling plant. They find it easier to export to China and then import the material back from China than to export it from Italy to France. That is simply absurd.”
Swedish ECR MEP Beatrice Timgren warned that the requirements create new obstacles to cross-border trade, particularly for small online businesses.
“The EU was supposed to tear down trade barriers. Now, it is erecting new ones. If the EU cannot even deliver free trade, one has to ask: what is the point of being in the EU at all?”
Dutch ECR MEP Sander Smit said that different rules and registration requirements across Member States undermine the very principle of the Single Market.
“This is not a single market. It’s a perfect example of how a good intention can turn into a complete catastrophe.”
Italian ECR MEP Paolo Inselvini criticised the lack of regulatory certainty for companies that have already invested in meeting earlier EU recycling requirements.
“We’re calling on businesses to invest and make sacrifices, but the rules keep changing. There is no certainty in the rules. We should be working with businesses, not against them.”
Polish ECR MEP Jacek Ozdoba also criticised the growing complexity of the regulatory framework, highlighting the difficulty businesses face in understanding how the new requirements will work in practice.
“This has morphed into a 124-page document for businesses — a document that even debates the definition of a flowerpot. If we are spending our time pondering such matters, it demonstrates one thing: there is too much bureaucracy.”
The ECR Group argues that the implementation of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation must be practical, proportionate and predictable. Common rules should facilitate the free movement of goods and recycled materials, rather than creating new administrative and regulatory barriers within the single market.
