Government should give people incentives to promote recycling, leading scientist says

'Why shouldn't you get credit points for recycling, looking after your children properly, making sure they do their homework?' he says

Should people be rewarded for recycling? (Getty)

Incentives to protect the environment should be offered by the Government, a leading geologist has said.

Mark Maslin, a professor of climatology at University College London, said a system that awards individuals points for recycling which could then be exchanged for rewards could help reduce human impact on the environment.

Speaking at the Cheltenham Science Festival, Prof Maslin said: "Why shouldn't you get credit points for recycling, looking after your children properly, making sure they do their homework?"

The idea, which Prof Maslin compared to China's social credit system, came about after co-panellist Professor Adam Hart suggested that if people were to spend three days working on a community environmental project they should get 3 per cent off their tax bill.

Professor Georgina Mace, who also sat on the panel, said new systems are needed to "make it easier for people to do the right thing".

She added: "We need to do that with the environment and prioritise environmental incentives and innovations, such as making it easy for people to have low-carbon footprints, eat food that isn't damaging to soils and water.

"Rather than making it punitive and restrictive, make it easy and encouraging."

These suggestions were made in opposition to a potential individual "carbon budget", which all panellists were against, with Prof Maslin calling it "unequal".

"The problem is most normal people cannot understand the tax system in this country. If you happen to be slightly better off, you pay an accountant to fiddle your taxes to make sure you pay the least amount of tax," he added.

"If you had a carbon budget, you would do the same. Therefore it isn't equally shared in one society.

"Government should embed it into the tax system. If you want a high carbon-producing car then you whack on a load of tax. Then people have choices and it is a financial incentive."

Prof Mace said the carbon budget would be "punitive because you are limited by a carbon budget and also because it would fundamentally become inequitable as people are limited by different needs".

Press Association