Asked by: Elliot Colburn (Conservative - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to review the (a) sale and (b) use of rodent glue traps across the UK; and whether he has plans to (i) introduce an outright ban, (ii) prohibit public sale and use and (iii) regulate use by other operators of those traps.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
The use of glue traps is being considered very closely as part of the Government's continued drive to maintain the highest animal welfare standards in the world.
We will look to restrict the use of glue traps as a means of pest control to help make sure rodents are despatched in a humane manner. Glue traps can cause immense suffering to rodents and other animals that inadvertently fall victim to their use.
Anyone using glue traps already has a responsibility under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to act within the law to ensure their activities do not cause any unnecessary suffering.
Asked by: Elliot Colburn (Conservative - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage a shift from conventional single use plastic films to certified compostable alternatives; and if he will set a target under the Environment Bill to accelerate that process.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
While compostable materials may be seen as a solution to reduce the impact of waste, they can also be more environmentally damaging than non-compostable materials if disposed of incorrectly. The Government is concerned that, some claims about the compostability of plastic-based products cannot be verified.
In order to consider impacts carefully, Defra and BEIS published a call for evidence to help us consider the development of standards or certification criteria for bio-based, biodegradable, and compostable plastics, and to better understand their effects on the environment and our waste management system. We are currently analysing responses to the call for evidence and will publish the Government’s response shortly.
Our Resources and Waste Strategy sets out our ambition to transition to a circular economy by keeping resources in the system for longer and extracting maximum value from them, before recycling materials when they can no longer be reused. We have recently published consultations on introducing Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging and introducing a Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers. These consultations will inform policy that will transform the economic incentives on packaging producers by encouraging an increase in the amount and quality of unavoidable plastic packaging that is recycled or reused, so driving up recycling rates and helping to move us towards a circular economy.
We are also preparing to launch a second consultation on increasing the consistency of materials collected for recycling from households, businesses and other organisations in England, which will seek views on the collection and disposal of compostable and biodegradable materials and the recycling of plastic films.
The UK Plastics Pact is targeting plastic film as a coordinated effort involving the entire value chain to fix the system to create a circular economy for single use plastic films. Last year the Plastics Pact published a roadmap ‘Creating a Circular Economy for Flexible Plastic Packaging’, which sets out the high-level actions that need to be taken by each part of the value chain. The new roadmap sets out five key areas where efforts should be focused in order to develop a circular economy for flexible plastics. These are: designing packaging that can be recycled and sorted; capitalising on existing front of store collection points; implementing kerbside collection by all local authorities; investing in sorting and reprocessing capacity and capabilities; and ensuring strong and stable end markets for recycled flexible plastic packaging.
The Environment Bill requires the Government to set at least one long-term, legally binding target in four priority areas, including Resource Efficiency and Waste Reduction. This will not be focused on increasing the use of compostable plastics, instead the target will ensure a holistic approach to all materials. These targets will be set following a robust, evidence-led process that includes seeking independent expert advice, a role for stakeholders and the public, and parliamentary scrutiny.
Asked by: Elliot Colburn (Conservative - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the increase in supermarket deliveries since the start of the covid-19 outbreak on the use of single use plastic bags by supermarkets.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
Since 5 October 2015, large retailers in England have been required by law to charge a minimum of 5p for single-use carrier bags (SUCBs) and to report on the amount they sell each year. The data for the year 2020-2021 will be published in the summer.
The full datasets for each reporting year are on Gov.UK and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/carrier-bag-charge-summary-of-data-in-england.
The obligation for supermarkets to charge for SUCBs supplied with online deliveries (online grocery delivery bags) was temporarily removed in response to the first Covid-lockdown. These changes were only temporary, from 21 March 2020 to 21 September 2020. This exemption was made as a precautionary measure and in order to allow retailers time to adapt their delivery systems. As well as the charge exemption, the obligation to report during this time period was waived. The charge for these bags was reinstated in September 2020 along with the reporting requirement. Therefore the dataset for the year 2020-2021, will not include data from this period on bags used for online deliveries.
Asked by: Elliot Colburn (Conservative - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of local authorities with responsibility for waste recycling centres have introduced charges for the use of waste recycling services; and if he will provide details of (a) which local authorities have introduced those charges and (b) how much each of those local authorities is charging for those services.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
Defra does not hold records on which household and waste recycling centres (HWRCs) charge for the disposal of waste. The Controlled Waste Regulations 2012 set out charging arrangements for different categories of waste, including waste delivered to HWRCs. Charges made by local authorities to dispose of DIY waste vary and some do not charge for this service.
In our Resources and Waste Strategy we committed to ensuring that charging arrangements in the Controlled Waste Regulations are clear, especially in relation to waste arising from small scale DIY construction activities carried out by ordinary householders with no specialist skills, which the government has been clear should not be charged for. We will review the Household Waste Recycling Centre services and the Controlled Waste Regulations and, subject to consultation, will amend them to ensure they remain fit for purpose, charges are fairly applied, and that services are accessible, support high levels of recycling and deliver value for money.
Asked by: Elliot Colburn (Conservative - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage local authorities to collect and scan cats injured or killed in road traffic accidents for a microchip and inform their owners.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
It is established good practice for local authorities to scan any cat or dog found on the streets so that the owner can be informed. Cats Protection reports that 80% of councils in England routinely scan cats involved in accidents.
Additionally, Highways England has clear guidelines for contractors to follow when they find a deceased cat or dog. This process is designed with owners in mind, giving them the best chance of being informed of the incident to allow closure. The process is laid out in the Network Management Manual and in 2015 the necessary arrangements were made in all Highways England’s contracts to collect and identify cats and dogs killed on the strategic road network and to contact their owners.
Asked by: Elliot Colburn (Conservative - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to his answer to Q40 in the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee's oral evidence session on The work of DEFRA, HC 261, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of strengthening requirements for cats entering the UK.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
The end of the transition period will present new opportunities for managing our own Pet Travel rules and welfare arrangements for all pets, including cats. We are listening to the concerns of stakeholders around future requirements and the Government is developing a range of options to ensure there are robust controls on disease and animal welfare whilst allowing pet owners to continue to be able to travel to and from the EU with the minimum of disruption.