England's HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) tax department has released the first official Plastic Packaging Tax (PPT) statistics for the financial year 2022-23.

The data shows that the department has collected £276m ($350.7m) PPT revenue during the reported year.

This includes £72m revenue collected between April and September along with £66m and £65m revenue reported during October and December, as well as between January and March this year, respectively.

The rate of tax during the fiscal year 2022-23 was £200 per tonne.

It has now been updated to £210.82 per tonne, starting from 1 April 2023, for the entire financial year 2023-24.

HMRC said that this increase in rates is in alignment with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast of consumer price index inflation.

Introduced on 1 April 2022, the PPT aims to provide economic incentives for using recycled plastic in packaging, to further increase the overall rates of plastic waste collection and recycling in the country.

The tax rate is applicable for manufacturers and importers of plastic packaging components containing less than 30% recycled plastic content.

According to HMRC data, a total of 4,142 businesses were registered to the PPT tax scheme, as of 8 August 2023.

Out of all the total plastic packaging domestically produced and imported into the UK, which weighed 3,502 tonnes, only 39% was included under PPT as taxable, the report confirmed.

The remaining 61% included 40% plastic packaging containing 30% or more recycled plastic, 21% for export purposes or intended for export or being converted, and 1% was exempt for use in immediate packaging of human medicines.

The data showed that out of the total plastic packaging declared, approximately 52% was manufactured domestically while 48% was imported into the UK.