Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address fungi being a notified feature in 0.3 per cent of SSSIs in England; and whether they will commit the necessary resources for new sites already on Natural England’s SSSI pipeline to be so notified.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

While only a small proportion of existing sites currently have fungi recorded as monitored features, Natural England (NE) continues to improve consistency in how all features are identified and assessed.

As around 8% of England has been designated as SSSI over the past 40 years, NE considers that most suitable areas have already been notified, though further cases may arise as evidence improves and environmental conditions change.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to update their definition of polypropylene to allow non-black polypropylene plant pots to be classed as green under the Recyclability assessment methodology: assessing materials, updated on 4 September 2025.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

PackUK has received feedback highlighting ongoing challenges with stable market demand, collection, sorting performance, and recyclability for coloured rigid polypropylene. The Recyclability Assessment Methodology is reviewed and updated annually. Officials are currently seeking advice on this issue from the independent RAM Technical Advisory Committee to inform the next iteration of the RAM (2027), due to be published in July 2026.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what penalties will be imposed on local authorities that do not comply with Simpler Recycling requirements; and when and how they plan to report on rates of compliance.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Public authorities (such as waste collection authorities) are expected to comply with their statutory duties. If they do not comply, they are at risk of judicial review. However, local authorities are independent bodies and are accountable to their electorate rather than to Ministers or Government departments.