Environmental Protection (Plastic Plates etc. and Polystyrene Containers etc.) (England) Regulations 2023

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering Excerpts

Tuesday 20th June 2023 Grand Committee

[Lord Harlech (Con)]

My Lords, I declare my farming and land management interests as set out in the register. These regulations were laid before the House on 23 May.

The purpose of this instrument is to restrict the supply of single-use plastic plates, bowls and trays and to ban the supply of single-use plastic cutlery, balloon sticks and expanded and extruded polystyrene food and drink containers, including cups. The instrument applies to England only, as environmental protection is a devolved matter. I will cover both the purpose and the impact of the instrument, starting with the former.

It is the Government’s ambition to leave the environment in a better state for the next generation. The Government’s 25-year environment plan and the resources and waste strategy outline the steps that we will take to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042. Government measures focus on extracting maximum value from plastic materials by making sure that we keep it in circulation for longer, moving away from a “take, make, throw” model and shifting towards a circular economy. Single-use plastic items are especially problematic, as they are typically littered or discarded to general waste, rather than recycled. This is due to the difficulties involved in segregating, cleaning and processing them.

The instrument will restrict and ban commonly littered single-use plastic items that we so often see polluting our environment and are frequently reported in beach litter surveys. These items can endanger wildlife and damage habitats. As well as causing damage to biodiversity, there are also costs associated with their clean-up. It is estimated that the UK spends more than £15 million a year removing beach litter. This does not include the costs imposed on our tourism and fishing industries, which are also impacted.

As is well understood, plastic eventually breaks down into microplastics, ending up in our soils and seas and eventually permeating our food chains. The full impact of microplastics is still being uncovered, especially the impacts on human health. Therefore, to build on the success of other single-use plastic item bans and our carrier bag charge, further action is needed to curtail the use of problematic single-use plastic items and their release into the environment.

Turning to the impact of the statutory instrument, we acknowledge the ongoing voluntary action being taken by industry to reduce the use of these items, led by the UK Plastics Pact. These new regulations will support that and ensure that all businesses move to more sustainable alternatives.

To inform the regulations, we gathered key stakeholder views by running a public consultation on these measures between November 2021 and February 2022. This showed overwhelming support for the regulations, with more than 80% of respondents supporting their introduction. We also consulted businesses, the NHS and charities to determine the scope of the regulations. To minimise the impact on small businesses, we have given a nine-month lead-time since the announcement of the ban.

It is intended that this instrument will come into force on 1 October this year. From then, it will make it an offence to supply single-use plastic cutlery, balloon sticks and certain types of polystyrene, with no exemptions. The ban on the supply of single-use plastic plates, trays and bowls applies only when supplied to the end user —typically a consumer, who will use them for their intended purpose. Businesses can continue to supply these items to other businesses. This allows single-use plastic plates, trays and bowls to continue to be used for packaging, as defined in Regulation 3 of the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2015. This is to avoid confusion with the Government’s proposals for extended producer responsibility for packaging, which will give producers responsibility for the costs of their packaging throughout its lifecycle. However, it is important to stress in all cases that we encourage businesses to use reusable alternatives where practical.

We are determined to get this right, and it is vital that businesses and the public are informed about what they can and cannot do. We have recently published guidance for businesses and will publish our guidance for local authorities in advance of this instrument coming into force. The guidance will assist manufacturers, suppliers, retailers and the public in understanding the enforcement and sanctions regime. Defra intends to further raise awareness by meeting local authority representatives to provide further clarity and support on the restrictions and exemptions, and to empower trading standards officers to carry out effective enforcement.

This instrument also makes amendments to the Environmental Protection (Plastic Straws, Cotton Buds and Stirrers) (England) Regulations 2020 and the Environmental Protection (Microbeads) (England) Regulations 2017. These are to amend the civil sanctions provisions in those instruments to provide for fixed monetary penalties, instead of variable monetary penalties. This will ensure consistency with the civil sanctions provisions in this instrument and make enforcement easier for local authorities. The amendments to the 2020 regulations also omit a transitional provision relating to medical devices, which is no longer needed. Finally, I should mention a typographical error in the instrument as laid in draft. The heading preceding Regulation 14, “Part 1—Amendments”, should read “Part 6”. I confirm that our intention is to have this corrected in the draft instrument before it is made.

To conclude, these new regulations send a strong signal to industry and the public that we need to think carefully about the products we buy and the materials from which they are made. This instrument will bring us a step closer to protecting the environment and reducing the risk of harm to human health and marine life. I commend the draft regulations to the House.

[Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con)]

My Lords, I thank my noble friend and welcome him to a speaking role on the Government Bench this afternoon.

I broadly welcome the regulations before us—I just have some queries, which I shall address. In so far as it goes, the ban is very welcome. We are told that the instrument

“bans the supply of single-use of plastic cutlery and balloon sticks and EPS/XPS food and drink containers in England”.

But at paragraph 7.4, the Explanatory Memorandum goes on to say that the,

“ban does not apply to the supply of a single-use plastic plate, tray, or bowl that is packaging as defined in regulation 3 of the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2015”.

Apparently, that is to do with extended producer responsibility. Would it not have been better if it had been absorbed in these regulations? From the point of view of producers and users, it would be clearer what is being banned under the instrument and what is not.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Harlech (Con)]

That is a fair question, although it is slightly out of Defra’s remit, so I think that the best thing to do would be to write to the noble Baroness in response to her question about trading standards officers.

To avoid duplication or confusion with our proposals for our extended producer responsibility scheme, bowls, plates and trays used as packaging by businesses will not be included in the ban. However, we strongly encourage businesses to explore how they can reduce the use of single-use items and move to reusable alternatives instead.

My noble friend Lady McIntosh of Pickering rightly brought up the potential impact on businesses through the introduction of this SI. The largest cost is due to capital investment costs incurred by producers for adapting their production processes. Producers may also incur a loss of profits. Another large cost is due to wholesale prices of wooden cutlery and paper, and food and beverage containers, usually being larger than their plastic equivalents. Businesses will also incur familiarisation costs, additional waste management costs and additional fuel costs. On the question about single-use plastic cotton buds used for medical purposes, there are exemptions for use for forensic and scientific purposes—otherwise, they are totally banned.

If I have neglected to answer any questions, I shall consult Hansard, and do my best to write with an answer. Not wishing to detain the Grand Committee further, I conclude by thanking noble Lords for their contributions.

[Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con)]

If my noble friend is unable to answer today, can he write to us on substituting wood for plastics and the knock-on effect that that would have on the environment and deforestation? I understand that that might be the responsibility of a different part of the department, but the noble Baroness, Lady Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville, and I both asked about that. I understand that it is quite technical, so he could write to us.

[Lord Harlech (Con)]

I think that I just said that I shall answer in writing any questions that I have not answered now.