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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice the Environment Agency has given Amazon about the need to (1) separate, (2) re-use, and (3) recycle, unwanted stock.

We are aware of the recent news regarding Amazon and the alleged destruction of unsold stock and are closely monitoring the situation.

Businesses that handle waste, including companies like Amazon, are obliged to follow the waste hierarchy, under our Waste Regulations 2011, which requires action to prevent waste as the priority option. Failure to meet the legal obligation to take all reasonable steps to apply these steps can lead to enforcement action from the Environment Agency in England. Waste is a devolved matter and SEPA is the regulator in Scotland.

The Government recently consulted on its draft Waste Prevention Programme. The consultation document outlined the potential for, and benefits of, action on waste prevention and sets out the actions that the Government intends to take. It recognised that action is required across society – by government, businesses, local authorities, consumers and others - for progress to be made. Responses to the consultation are currently being analysed.

The Government also plans to consult on reforms to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations later this year. Amongst a number of issues, we will seek views on placing new responsibilities on Online Market Places such as Amazon and reviewing existing obligations placed on retailers to ensure they play their part in maximising collections of unwanted electricals for re-use and recycling. We also want to gather views on ways in which we can make it easier for all businesses with unwanted electricals to return them under a system of producer responsibility that respects the waste hierarchy.

The Environment Agency has had no direct contact to date with Amazon over destroying, separating, re-using, or recycling unwanted stock.