Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
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 proposed fee structure for the Extended Producer Responsibility scheme on economic growth.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In October 2024, the Government published an updated assessment of the impact of introducing the pEPR scheme on packaging producers as a whole. This impact assessment did not split the assessment by sector.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what engagement he has had with glass manufacturers on the business impact of the forthcoming Extended Producer Responsibility scheme.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK’s packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (pEPR) policy has been in development since 2019. This is underpinned by extensive consultation and engagement with industry stakeholders, including the glass manufacturing sector, to provide businesses with a clear indication of the scheme’s design and implementation.
Consultations were held in 2019 and 2021, concluding with a final consultation on reforms to the Packaging Recovery Note (PRN) system in 2022. In 2023, the four nations of the UK jointly consulted on the operability of the draft Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024. Feedback from stakeholders during this process directly informed a number of amendments made prior to final regulations.
Throughout this period, Defra officials engaged closely with industry experts, including the glass industry. This collaboration has helped to ensure that the modelling of local authority costs used within the scheme reflects the practical realities of waste management operations.
We have made a full assessment of the expected business impacts of the policy, including on the glass sector. This is detailed in the official impact assessment for the Producer Responsibility Obligations (packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024, which remains publicly available: The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024.
The Government remains committed to ongoing engagement with manufacturers and other stakeholders to support the successful and fair implementation of the scheme.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the proportion of product liable for extended producer responsibility that will be sold to the on trade.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Since Autumn 2024, the Government has been working with stakeholders, including representatives of the hospitality sector, to consider potential amendments to the definition of household packaging. We are planning next steps as a priority and will share more information soon.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the definition of household waste under the Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging scheme to apply exemptions to products consumed and disposed of within hospitality venues.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has been engaging extensively with stakeholders from various sectors, including the hospitality sector, to develop a better understanding of the potential impacts of a change in the definition of household packaging. The government will set out its intended next steps on the definition shortly.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
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 potential impact of the Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging scheme that will be introduced in April 2025 on the drinks industry.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I provided to PQ 33304 on 4 March 2025.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
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 neonicotinoids that have been used since 2020 following an emergency authorisation on wildlife.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Three neonicotinoids – clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam – are not permitted for general use because of the risks they pose to pollinators. However, emergency authorisations were granted by the previous Government for the use of the thiamethoxam-containing pesticide Cruiser SB to treat sugar beet seed in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024.
Environmental monitoring activities were undertaken as a condition of the emergency authorisations for the use of Cruiser SB granted by the previous administration, alongside government-funded monitoring projects. The results of this monitoring work can be found within the HSE’s emergency registration reports, published on GOV.UK.
This year I rejected the application for an emergency authorisation to use Cruiser SB on sugar beet in England. I did not take this decision lightly, considering expert advice from the Health and Safety Executive and Expert Committee on Pesticides, the Defra Chief Scientific Adviser and Defra economists. In making my decision, I recognised that the potential adverse effects to bees and other pollinators could not be excluded if the Cruiser SB authorisation were to be granted.
In December last year we published a policy statement outlining our intention to end the use of these neonicotinoid pesticides for good. We will update the guidance that sets out the approach to decisions on applications for emergency authorisations to take full account of the importance of pollinators. Further, we will identify legislative options to prevent future use of emergency authorisations for products containing clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam, which are extremely toxic to pollinators.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to paragraphs 82 to 85 of the Fourth Report of Session 2023–24 of the Environmental Audit Committee, The UK’s contribution to tackling global deforestation, HC 405, whether she plans to implement the recommendation on human rights abuses in supply chains.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We note the committee’s recommendations regarding the rights of indigenous people and local communities, and customary land tenure. We will set out our approach in due course.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the scope of the Environment Act 2021 to include more (a) sectors and (b) definitions of (i) legal and (ii) illegal deforestation.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The approach to tackling deforestation in UK supply chains is being considered and we will provide an update in due course.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of broadening the scope of measures within the Environment Act 2021 to help tackle illegal deforestation.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The approach to tackling deforestation in UK supply chains is being considered and we will provide an update in due course.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Environment Agency on dredging rivers.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra works closely with the Environment Agency (EA) to ensure it is equipped to carry out its functions effectively and deliver for the public and the environment; this includes flood risk management and watercourse maintenance.
The EA focuses its efforts on those activities which will achieve the greatest benefit in terms of protecting people and property from flooding. Dredging and main river clearance are an important part of EA’s maintenance programme. Before undertaking dredging, the EA will work in close consultation with local communities to assess whether it is technically achievable and cost effective, does not significantly increase flood risk for others downstream, and is environmentally acceptable.
In most places there are much more effective and efficient ways to better protect communities and increase their resilience to flooding, as part of a catchment-based approach. Whilst dredging is part of the solution in some locations, it is not a universal solution to what is a complex issue.