Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department have taken to improve (a) environmental and (b) human sustainability practices in the fashion industry.

The textiles and fashion industry plays an important role in the UK’s social and cultural heritage, and is a major driver of economic growth - with UK designers and manufacturers exporting around the world. Improving the creative industries’ environmental impact was identified as a priority in our Creative Industries Sector Vision, published in June 2023.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) works with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) on the work they are doing on textiles waste management. Defra’s ambitions for minimising textile waste are outlined in ‘Maximising Resources, Minimising Waste’ which constitutes a new Waste Prevention Plan and was published on 28 July 2023. Defra funds Textiles 2030, a voluntary initiative with over 110 signatories from the fashion manufacturing industry covering 62% by sales of the UK clothing market. Signatories are committed to reducing their carbon and water usage and to other circular economy principles such as agreeing good design principles so that their products are durable and recyclable.

DCMS also supports the UK Research and Investment (UKRI) £15 million Circular Fashion programme, launched in 2022 to bring the sector, academia and government together to understand and drive the fashion and textiles industry towards sustainable and responsible practices.