It has been near impossible to ignore the dire economic headlines in the press over the last week or two. 

I’m so pleased to be able to talk about something positive - a new voluntary agreement for the UK construction industry to halve the amount of waste to landfill by 2012 - that makes strong economic sense as well as delivering significant environmental benefits.

The Halving Waste to Landfill agreement will be launched today.  

At a time when we are all tightening our belts, the economic arguments for waste reduction have growing resonance, and it’s good to know that some of the major players in the construction industry have already signed up.  WRAP has worked with BERR, Defra, the Scottish Government and the whole industry to develop the agreement, and will be providing, alongside Envirowise, a stream-lined and co-ordinated set of free resources to support all levels of the industry do their bit, as well as a robust framework for measurement and reporting on progress.

I am proud that WRAP has taken a leading role in creating this agreement, but as with everything we do it is what our partners do that really make the difference.  The next four years will be challenging for us all, but I am sure that together we will make that step change.