Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2020 to Question 1349, with reference to the tax on the production and import of plastic packaging, what criteria his department used to determined that less than 30 per cent recycled content was the suitable point to apply that tax.

At Budget 2018, the Government announced a world-leading new tax on businesses that produce or import plastic packaging which uses less than 30% recycled plastic, taking effect from April 2022.

The Government wants to set a threshold for the level of recycled plastic in plastic packaging that is both ambitious and achievable. The Government was informed about current levels of recycled plastic and what would be possible in the future as part of its 2018 call for evidence on single-use plastic waste. The 30% threshold was based on this, as set out in the consultation the Government ran in 2019 on the initial proposed design for the tax.

In the summary of responses to the 2019 consultation published last July, the Government noted the variety of views on the recycled content threshold and has since been continuing to consider which approaches to designing the tax will best support its objectives, are most administratively feasible, and do not have a disproportionate impact on business. The Government will set out next steps regarding the tax in due course.