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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the operational feasibility of retailers providing battery takeback services, particularly where products are sold through physical and online channels.

Under current producer responsibility legislation for batteries in Great Britain, retailers of portable batteries must already offer takeback services for waste portable batteries if they sell or supply 32kg or more of portable batteries per year. Retailers must have a collection point at their place of business; this applies to products sold in store and online.

Defra is working with the Devolved Governments to review the UK’s producer responsibility legislation for batteries. As part of this review, my officials held a series of workshops with industry earlier this year to explore the impacts of regulatory alignment with the requirements of the EU Batteries Regulation in Great Britain and will formally consult on proposals in due course. The EU Batteries Regulation applies directly in Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework.