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 the Waste Batteries and Accumulators Regulations 2009, what information his Department holds on the number of vape (a) distributors, (b) importers, (c) manufacturers and (d) producers registered with (i) the Environment Agency and (ii) a producer compliance scheme.

The Environment Agency (EA) holds a public register of battery producers and approved battery (producer) compliance schemes. Only battery producers that qualify as large producers are required to join a battery compliance scheme. Large producers are those that place more than one tonne of batteries on the UK market during a year.

There are currently 25 vape producers that are also registered as battery producers, 21 of which have joined a battery producer compliance scheme.

There is no regulatory requirement for battery distributors to register with the EA or a producer compliance scheme.