Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of operating different deposit return scheme frameworks in different parts of the UK on costs for (a) producers and (b) retailers.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A new organisation called UK Deposit Management Organisation Ltd (UK DMO) will run the scheme. It’s a not-for-profit group, led by businesses. They were officially appointed in May 2025 (England & NI) and June 2025 (Scotland).
The Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) across England, Northern Ireland and Scotland have been designed with interoperability in mind to ensure the schemes look and feel like one scheme in all three nations.
I and my officials remain in close working partnership with the Welsh Government as they develop further detail of their scheme, and it is reassuring that they have decided to align their scheme launch date with DRS in the rest of the UK.
Government will continue to work closely across the sector, and now with UK DMO, to ensure the smooth implementation of the DRS for businesses and consumers. We will also maintain regular engagement with retailers, producers and interested groups to monitor implementation progress.
Each nation has or will set out the costs of their schemes in their respective impact assessments. The full impact assessment for England and Northern Ireland was published when the regulations came into force in January of this year and can be found here.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department taking to ensure that the Deposit Management Organisation can operate effectively in the context of the Welsh government’s decision to proceed with a scheme that includes glass.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The regulations allow the Deposit Management Organisation(s) for England and Northern Ireland to work in an interoperable way with any other deposit return schemes.
We previously published agreed interoperability requirements which would ensure that schemes can operate as one, including commitments to single registration and reporting, processes for reciprocal takeback of material, single logos and the same deposit level. These requirements currently apply for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Officials are working closely with the Welsh Government as they develop their regulations to ensure interoperability between the schemes where possible.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the inclusion of glass in the Welsh government's deposit return scheme on businesses in other parts of the UK.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK Government acknowledges the concerns raised by businesses in relation to differences in approach to Deposit Return Scheme across the UK. We will continue to engage with the Welsh Government on this matter as they finalise their policy positions and legislation. The Welsh Government will be responsible for developing an impact assessment of their scheme.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with the Welsh government on the interoperability of its deposit return scheme with the schemes in (a) England, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I and my officials remain in close working partnership with the Welsh Government as they develop further details of their scheme, with particular consideration of interoperability with DRS in the rest of the UK.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make a comparative assessment of the potential impact of the deposit return scheme that will be used in (a) Wales and (b) the rest of the UK on the (i) economy and (ii) environment.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government published a Final Impact Assessment for the deposit return scheme (DRS) in England and Northern Ireland alongside the regulations in January 2025.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of staff in his Department have flexible working arrangements; and how many of those work compressed hours.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Based on the information recorded centrally about working patterns, Defra can report that 13.5% of employees work compressed hours.
Additionally, working from home is a form of flexible working and almost all roles in Defra include some flexibility to work from home for up to 40% of their hours, in line with wider Civil Service policy.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of staff in his Department did not meet the minimum office attendance target in the latest period for which data is available; and what sanctions his Department issues to staff who do not meet this target.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
On 24 October 2024 the Cabinet Office announced that 60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service. Senior managers will continue to be expected to be in the office more than 60% of the time.
Occupancy rates in our London HQ are given in the published Civil Service Headquarters occupancy data.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether there are any requirements for civil servants to book a desk in advance in order to attend the office in person in each of (a) their Department's office workplaces and (b) the arm’s length bodies of their Department.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
There is an online booking tool for Core Defra and arm’s length bodies’ staff to use to book workspaces in advance at some office locations (including desks, meeting rooms, and collaboration spaces). It is not a requirement to have the online booking tool in place at all office locations.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of neonicotinoids in spot pet treatments on natural habitats.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Parasiticides play an important role in the protecting of animal health from fleas, ticks, and vector-borne diseases, and in protecting human health from zoonotic transfer of disease. Therefore, their regulation requires a careful balance between effective parasite control for animal health and welfare and human health whilst minimising potential risks to the environment.
To address environmental safety, every veterinary pharmaceutical undergoes an environmental exposure assessment, with products for companion animals usually ending in a phase 1 assessment. If exposure is deemed high, a more detailed Phase II risk assessment is conducted, evaluating potential environmental impact based on expected exposure and toxicity. The findings from these assessments are considered as part of the final benefit/risk assessment during the approval process. There are also warnings that accompany products advising on use and to mitigate against dogs entering water courses directly after treatment. Environmental assessments are conducted in accordance with international guidelines and data standards.
The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) is conducting a number of research activities to provide further evidence on environmental impacts and causes. Furthermore, the VMD supports a review of the international environmental risk assessment guidelines for companion animal parasiticides, which has been proposed and is currently under consideration by the body for International Cooperation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Veterinary Medicinal Products (VICH).
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the use of neonicotinoids in spot pet treatments on the environment.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Parasiticides play an important role in the protecting of animal health from fleas, ticks, and vector-borne diseases, and in protecting human health from zoonotic transfer of disease. Therefore, their regulation requires a careful balance between effective parasite control for animal health and welfare and human health whilst minimising potential risks to the environment.
To address environmental safety, every veterinary pharmaceutical undergoes an environmental exposure assessment, with products for companion animals usually ending in a phase 1 assessment. If exposure is deemed high, a more detailed Phase II risk assessment is conducted, evaluating potential environmental impact based on expected exposure and toxicity. The findings from these assessments are considered as part of the final benefit/risk assessment during the approval process. There are also warnings that accompany products advising on use and to mitigate against dogs entering water courses directly after treatment. Environmental assessments are conducted in accordance with international guidelines and data standards.
The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) is conducting a number of research activities to provide further evidence on environmental impacts and causes. Furthermore, the VMD supports a review of the international environmental risk assessment guidelines for companion animal parasiticides, which has been proposed and is currently under consideration by the body for International Cooperation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Veterinary Medicinal Products (VICH).