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1717937

registered interest
date	14/05/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to (a) improve recycling infrastructure and (b) reduce plastic waste exports.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	26208
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2024 answer text <p>In the Resources and Waste Strategy, we have committed to taking actions which will help to stimulate private investment in reprocessing and recycling infrastructure.</p><p> </p><p>We are introducing Collection and Packaging Reforms made up of Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging, Simpler Recycling and a Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers. Through these reforms we want to significantly increase domestic reprocessing and recycling capacity by both increasing investors’ confidence and improving the competitiveness of UK reprocessing.</p><p> </p><p>Our existing Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations have led to investment in waste infrastructure to process end of life electrical and electronic equipment.</p><p> </p><p>We encourage the development of infrastructure for plastic reprocessing to ensure the UK meets its recycling targets as well as supporting these collection and packaging reforms.</p><p> </p><p>Additionally, HM Treasury’s plastic packaging tax is expected to increase demand for secondary material plastic and increasing reprocessing infrastructure will help meet this demand. Reprocessing infrastructure enables the value of resource use to be maximised as well as waste arisings and its impact on the environment to be minimised.</p><p> </p><p>These actions are all intended to increase the amount of plastic waste we recycle domestically so we can reduce our dependency on plastic waste exports.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 20/05/2024 14:10:54 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1702520

registered interest
date	19/04/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to reduce (a) single-use and (b) other plastic waste.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	22773
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/04/2024 answer text <p>In December 2018, the UK Government published its Resources and Waste Strategy. This sets out how we will achieve a circular economy for plastic and achieve our ambition to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042.</p><p> </p><p>Our goal is to maximise resource efficiency and minimise waste to keep plastic in circulation for longer by following the principles of the waste hierarchy: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. One way will do this is by making producers more responsible for the plastic they make with our incoming Collection and Packaging Reforms.</p><p> </p><p>Single-use plastics are a particularly problematic type of plastic that makes up much of our waste. We have introduced bans, including most recently in October 2023, on the supply of many unnecessary single-use plastic items. To tackle the use of virgin plastics, the Government brought in the Plastic Packaging Tax in April 2022.</p><p> </p><p>Internationally, the UK is a founding member of the High Ambition Coalition, a group of over 60 countries calling for an ambitious and effective UN Treaty to end plastic pollution. At the current round of negotiations in Canada, we are continuing to support a treaty that will address the full lifecycle of plastic to tackle the problem of plastic pollution globally, including through designing out waste and supporting a circular economy for plastic.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 25/04/2024 12:42:53 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1700436

registered interest
date	12/04/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on achieving its target to eliminate avoidable plastic waste by the end of 2042.
tabling member constituency	Belfast South
tabling member printed	Claire Hanna
uin	21323
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2024 answer text <p>We are making progress to address this concerning issue. In December 2018, the UK Government published its Resources and Waste Strategy. This sets out how we will achieve a circular economy for plastic and achieve our ambition to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042. Our goal is to maximise resource efficiency and minimise waste (including plastic) - by following the principles of the waste hierarchy: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – to keep plastic in circulation for longer. We will do this by making producers more responsible for the plastic they make with our incoming Collection and Packaging Reforms.</p><p> </p><p>Single-use plastics are a particularly problematic type of plastic that makes up much of our waste. To get us closer to our ambition to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042, we have introduced bans on the supply of many unnecessary single-use plastic items. We implemented one of the world’s toughest bans on microbeads in rinse-off personal care products and brought in measures to restrict the supply of plastic straws, plastic drink stirrers, and plastic-stemmed cotton buds in October 2020. The use of single-use carrier bags has been reduced in the main supermarkets by over 98% with our five pence charge. In May 2021 we increased the charge to 10 pence and extended it to all retailers to build on its success to date and create a level playing field for all businesses. In October 2023 we introduced a ban on the supply of single-use plastic plates, bowls, and trays to the end-user and ban the supply of single-use plastic cutlery and single-use plastic balloon sticks and expanded and extruded polystyrene food and drinks containers, including cups. We will continue to review the latest evidence on problematic products and/ or materials to take a systematic approach to reducing the use of unnecessary single-use plastic products.</p><p> </p><p>We are preparing for the fourth round of negotiations in April, to develop a new legally binding UN treaty to end plastic pollution. As a founding member of the High Ambition Coalition to End Plastic Pollution, the UK is pushing for an ambitious and effective UN Treaty to address the problem of plastic waste globally.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 23/04/2024 12:42:56 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4827 label Biography information for Claire Hanna

1699059

registered interest
date	26/03/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade to reduce exports of plastic waste.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	20591
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/04/2024 answer text <p>We want to deal with more of our plastic waste at home. The Government’s collection and packaging reforms will help to stimulate investment in the UK reprocessing infrastructure so we can reduce our dependency on plastic waste exports. In addition, the 2019 Conservative Party manifesto made a commitment to ban the export of plastic waste to countries which are not members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 16/04/2024 15:58:41 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1699060

registered interest
date	26/03/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to include the commitment to reduce plastic waste exports in his negotiating priorities for the Global Plastics Treaty.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	20592
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/04/2024 answer text <p>The UK is a member of the High ambition coalition to end plastic pollution and has taken an ambitious stance in negotiations, supporting a treaty that will address the full life cycle of plastic including restraining and reducing the production and consumption of plastic to sustainable levels, addressing plastic design and encouraging more recycling and re-use of plastic. Controls on plastic waste exports are already established under the Basel Convention. The UK is an active Party to the Basel Convention and the UK supported the tightening of controls on plastic waste exports adopted by parties in 2019.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 16/04/2024 15:06:41 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1665066

registered interest
date	16/10/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 5 February 2021 to Question 144990 on Plastics: Waste, whether it remains her Department's policy to issue a consultation on the ban on the export of plastic waste to non-OECD countries.
tabling member constituency	Newport West
tabling member printed	Ruth Jones
uin	202759
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2023 answer text <p>Yes. Defra officials are working to publish a consultation on delivering a ban on the export of plastic waste to non-OECD countries this year.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 23/10/2023 12:01:05 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4716 label Biography information for Ruth Jones

1656676

registered interest
date	01/09/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of impact of plastic waste in the environment on the food chain.
tabling member constituency	Nottingham North
tabling member printed	Alex Norris
uin	196437
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/09/2023 answer text <p>No specific assessment has been made on the impact of plastic waste on the food chain. However, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) is monitoring and assessing emerging information concerning microplastics in food and beverages. The Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products, and the Environment concluded in 2021 that, based on current data, &quot;it is not yet possible to perform a complete assessment for the potential risks from exposure to micro and nanoplastics via the oral and inhalation routes”. The FSA considers it is unlikely that the presence of these particles in food or drink would cause harm to consumers, based on current information; however, this will be kept under review as new evidence becomes available.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 11/09/2023 15:26:31 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4641 label Biography information for Alex Norris

1605623

registered interest
date	20/03/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department has taken to support small businesses to reduce the use of single-use plastics.
tabling member constituency	Watford
tabling member printed	Dean Russell
uin	169485
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2023 answer text <p>We are taking steps to help small businesses reduce their use of single-use plastic items.</p><p> </p><p>The 5p single-use carrier bag charge was introduced in England in October 2015 and has had a dramatic impact. The number of single-use plastic carrier bags sold by the main retailers has fallen from 7.6 billion in 2014, to 197 million in 2021/2022, a reduction of over 97%. To build on the success of the charge so far and to create a level playing field for all large and small businesses alike, we increased the charge from 5p to 10p and extended it to all retailers from 21 May 2021.</p><p> </p><p>We recently announced measures to ban the supply of single-use plastic plates, cutlery, and balloon sticks, and expanded and extruded polystyrene food and beverage containers, including cups from October 2023. This ban will apply to all businesses including small businesses.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 23/03/2023 17:51:14 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4812 label Biography information for Dean Russell

1587196

registered interest
date	20/02/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of the wider adoption of biomass plastics to reduce plastic waste; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Eastbourne
tabling member printed	Caroline Ansell
uin	148673
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/02/2023 answer text <p>In April 2021, we published our response to our call for evidence on the need for standards for bio-based, biodegradable, and compostable plastics. Concerns were raised that the full environmental impacts of bio-based plastics, including land and water usage for example, were potentially greater overall compared with conventional based plastics.</p><p> </p><p>Further research is required to make sure that bio-based plastics lead to a better environmental outcome overall. During the production of these materials, there are a number of factors we need to better understand – we need to consider water consumption, the impact of crop switching and carbon footprint, so a full lifecycle approach is considered. On the basis of current information, a key area of interest for Government is bio-based plastics derived from materials that would otherwise have been waste.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 24/02/2023 12:03:08 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4512 label Biography information for Caroline Ansell

1582521

registered interest
date	31/01/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Plastics: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps her Department has taken to reduce single-use plastic waste.
tabling member constituency	Watford
tabling member printed	Dean Russell
uin	136847
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/02/2023 answer text <p>In October 2020 we legislated to prevent the incineration or landfilling of certain separately collected material, including plastic, paper, metal and glass, unless it has undergone a treatment process first and only if landfill or incineration is the best environmental outcome. This is in addition to existing permit conditions that already prevent acceptance of recyclable material at landfills and waste incinerators.</p><p> </p><p>We also want to make recycling easier. Following support at public consultation, the new s45 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 stipulates that all local authorities in England must make arrangements for a core set of materials to be collected for recycling from households, including plastic packaging. In April last year, we brought in the Plastic Packaging Tax. This will stimulate increased levels of recycling and collection of plastic waste. The introduction of Extended Producer Responsibility in 2024 will also encourage businesses to think carefully about how much plastic packaging they use, to design and use plastic packaging that is easily recyclable and encourage use of reusable and refillable packaging. These measures will reduce plastic waste and divert plastic packaging away from landfill and incineration.</p><p> </p><p>We have restricted the supply of plastic straws, plastic drink stirrers, and plastic-stemmed cotton buds and introduced a carrier bag charge which has reduced the use of single-use carrier bags in the main supermarkets by over 97%. More recently we announced the supply of single-use plastic plates, cutlery, balloon sticks and expanded and extruded polystyrene food and beverage containers will also be banned in England from October this year.</p><p> </p><p>We are committed to going further and addressing other sources of plastic pollution, which is why we also ran a call for evidence to help us gather information to help inform future policy on other problematic plastic items and help inform future policy making. Our response can be found here: <a href="http://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/single-use-plastic-banning-the-supply-of-commonly-littered-single-use-plastic-items/outcome/summary-of-responses-and-government-response" target="_blank">www.gov.uk/government/consultations/single-use-plastic-banning-the-supply-of-commonly-littered-single-use-plastic-items/outcome/summary-of-responses-and-government-response</a>.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow grouped question UIN 136755 question first answered 06/02/2023 13:52:46 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4812 label Biography information for Dean Russell