Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to his Department’s Greening Government Commitments for 2021-25, how many tonnes of food waste were produced from his Departmental estate in financial year (a) 2021-22 and (b) 2022-23 up to the end of December 2022.

In line with Greening Government Commitments (GGCs), the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has developed a food waste reporting process that enables the department to work towards further reducing its food waste.

The requested information for 2021-2022 will be published in the Greening Government Commitments Annual Report for 2021-2022, due later this year. The data for April 1st 2022 to December 31st 2022 will be published in the Annual Report covering 2022-2023.

GGC annual reporting is delayed due to Covid-19 impacts, but government remains committed to reducing the environmental impact of its estate and operations.

Established in 2010, the GGCs set out the actions that government will take to improve the environmental impact of the government estate and its operations. They demonstrate how the UK government is leading by example and working to improve the environmental performance of its own estate and operations, in line with our 25 Year Environment Plan commitments to improve the environment within a generation.

Since inception of the GGCs, government has halved its greenhouse gas emissions and waste, in addition to making many other efficiencies. Progress against the commitments is published in GGC annual reports.

MoJ is currently developing a Circular Economy strategy setting out our approach to reducing waste and improving resource efficiency, including food waste.

The department is also committed to meeting Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services which include specific requirements to reduce food waste in our service contracts.

In 2021-22, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), together with HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) and HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS), produced 4,383 tonnes of food waste, disposed of through composting and anaerobic digestion. This represents a reduction from 5,633 tonnes the year before.