9 Sept. 2025: Bath’s Liberal Democrat MP, Wera Hobhouse, swapped the green benches of Westminster for the whirring machinery of a historic paper mill as she toured Portals Paper Limited.
The MP visited the Bathford Mill site on Tuesday, August 19, to learn more about the UK paper industry and the challenges it faces.
The mill has a history stretching back centuries, with records of a mill on the site as early as the Domesday Book in 1089. Paper production began there in 1809, before the factory turned its hand to everything from corn and cloth to leather goods, flour and even the famous Bath Oliver biscuits.
Since 1973, Bathford Mill has operated exclusively using the cylinder mould process – a highly specialised technique that ensures stable watermarking and exceptional quality. Today, it remains the world’s only specialist security paper mill of its kind, producing paper for passports, certificates and identity documents.
As a British company with 313 years of expertise, Portals is a leader in security printing features such as registered watermarks, UV-visible fibres and chemical sensitisation. Its work has played a key role in previous versions of the UK passport, helping make it one of the most secure travel documents in the world.
During the visit, Ms Hobhouse heard how the UK paper industry contributes more than £15 billion annually to the economy, supporting around 115,000 jobs across packaging, hygiene and other sectors.
Rebecca Lewis, operations director at Portals, said: “As well as that economic contribution, the paper industry is also a leader in environmental matters. Over 80 per cent of paper packaging is recycled, and the industry continues to reduce carbon emissions through sustainable practices. Socially, it supports skilled employment and public health through essential products. At Portals here in Bathford we are proud to employ around 125 people all working to ensure that the industry remains a key player in the UK’s circular economy and national supply chains.”
The visit also highlighted industry concerns about the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations introduced earlier this year. The rules require packaging producers to report their packaging data and pay fees to cover collection, processing and recycling costs. Businesses warn that the current fee structure risks discouraging sustainable materials in favour of lighter plastics.
Dimitra Rappou, executive director of sustainable products at the Confederation of Paper Industries, said: “Our industry is already investing significantly into recycling infrastructure and packaging innovations to support the UK’s recycling ambitions and movement towards a more circular economy. We are supportive of the principles of EPR… However, elements of the scheme stand at odds with these goals. For example, the EPR fee structure creates a cost advantage to choosing less sustainable materials, such as plastic, due to its lightweight nature. This situation risks undermining the very intention of the scheme.”
Ms Hobhouse added: “Paper is a crucial material used by all of us literally every single day. The industry makes a huge financial contribution to UK plc and has led the way in recycling, and I am proud to have such a valuable and world-class employer like Portals in my constituency.
“And while I welcome any measures that seek to improve recycling activity and promote sustainability goals, they need also to be workable and not have unintended adverse consequences for our economy. I look forward to advocating in Parliament for policies that support progress towards our mutual ambition of a more circular economy, with skilled jobs and tools for businesses and consumers to make sustainable choices included, while ensuring a system fit for the future.
“We are most definitely on the same page on this.”
By Lewis Clarke
https://www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerset-news/inside-ancient-bath-mill-makes-10454859