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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the shortened PRN trading year in 2026 on levels of price volatility in that sector.

The Government is working closely with key trade associations and industry stakeholders to understand the potential impact of delays to the availability of the new PRN digital system, particularly on smaller reprocessors and exporters, and in the plastics and glass recycling sectors. Based on consultation with stakeholders, we have prioritised providing the data that would help them most and support them to continue trading more confidently. The Government committed to keeping affected businesses updated and have issued weekly updates in addition to our helpdesk service. As part of our outreach to businesses, we are encouraging businesses them to share any key feedback and insights on the impact of the delays with us.

The Government will continue to meet with sector bodies and compliance schemes on a weekly basis during February to monitor impacts on businesses and PRN prices.