The Government published the Resources and Waste Strategy last year, setting out our plans to reduce, reuse and recycle more plastic than we do now. Our target is to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste throughout the life of the 25 Year Environment Plan, but for the most problematic plastics we are going faster.<\/p>
We pledged £20 million to the Plastics Research and Innovation Fund which aims to reduce the environmental costs of plastic and litter. Our sights are set on problematic plastics such as cigarette filters which contain single-plastic polymers and blight our streets and seas. The fund will seek to deliver strategic networking and research that will coordinate existing knowledge across the UK, catalysing new ideas and rapid solutions.<\/p>
Ministers have met twice with the Tobacco Manufacturers Association in the last three years, but the Government has not held discussions with any individual tobacco companies about eliminating plastic in cigarette butts.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4522", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Rebecca Pow"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Taunton Deane"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Rebecca Pow"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2019-10-29", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2019-10-29T12:43:05.233Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "13"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2019-10-24", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Plastics: Tobacco"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with cigarette manufacturers on eliminating plastic in cigarette butts.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1436", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Paul Farrelly"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Newcastle-under-Lyme"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Paul Farrelly"} ], "uin" : "4945"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1148840", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1148840/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The UK Government is committed to supporting deforestation-free supply chains as set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan.<\/p>
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To address the footprint of products linked to deforestation, such as soya and beef, we have established the Global Resource Initiative (GRI). Led by a taskforce comprising of senior representatives from the private sector and civil society, the GRI will produce a set of recommendations in early 2020 to address the impact of the UK\u2019s commodity supply chains. These recommendations may relate to regulatory and policy measures, transparency, financial incentives, trade, sustainable procurement and/or the role of the consumer. To address issues in relation to soya specifically, we have established the UK Roundtable on Sustainable Soya which has recently led to 83% of the UK retail market publishing concrete sourcing policies to deliver sustainable soya to the UK market.<\/p>
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The Government works in partnership with countries in the Amazon to tackle deforestation and has invested nearly £120 million through the UK\u2019s International Climate Finance on projects to support sustainable agriculture, prevent forest fires and implement the Forest Code in the Amazon, Atlantic Forest and Cerrado biomes. Following the Amazon fires the UK has pledged a further £10 million to protect and restore the Amazon rainforest in Brazil.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4062", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Richmond Park"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Zac Goldsmith"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2019-10-23", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2019-10-23T16:38:31.05Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "13"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2019-10-14", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Rainforests: Amazonia"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that no products linked to Amazon deforestation are sold in the UK.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1436", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Paul Farrelly"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Newcastle-under-Lyme"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Paul Farrelly"} ], "uin" : "83"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1148839", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1148839/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The Government has recently consulted on a package of measures to overhaul the waste and recycling system, including proposed reforms to the packaging producer responsibility system which will incentivise producers, including retailers, to make better, more sustainable decisions when designing and using packaging including using packaging that can be easily recycled. This consultation also proposed a mandatory UK-wide labelling scheme that provides clear information to help people to recycle, and improved communication campaigns funded by packaging producers to help consumers to know what and how to recycle. We will take primary powers in the Environment Bill to enable us to implement new extended producer responsibility (EPR) systems.<\/p>
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In addition, we have consulted on measures to achieve greater consistency in recycling provision across England, so that there is less confusion over how the packaging that retailers do sell can be recycled. The measures in both consultations will be implemented in 2023 and will be complimentary.<\/p>
<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4522", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Rebecca Pow"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Taunton Deane"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Rebecca Pow"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2019-10-22", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2019-10-22T15:50:55.397Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "13"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2019-10-14", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Packaging: Recycling"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of obligating all retailers to ensure that the packaging of products they sell can be recycled locally before stocking those products.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1436", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Paul Farrelly"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Newcastle-under-Lyme"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Paul Farrelly"} ], "uin" : "82"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1149359", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1149359/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "