Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to local authorities of the collection and disposal of packaging waste.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
In support of our forthcoming consultation on reforming the packaging producer responsibility system, we have prepared an early-stage impact assessment. This impact assessment assesses the costs to local authorities of collection and treatment of packaging waste. It will be published shortly, alongside the consultation. However, the National Audit Office published a report in 2018 stating that English local authorities spent an estimated £700 million in 2017 on collecting and treating packaging waste.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when his Department plans to publish its consultation on introducing consistent recyclable packaging material funded by Extended Producer Responsibility.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
Shortly.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many meetings his Department has held with compliance organisations to discuss the forthcoming resources and waste strategy in 2018.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
The Department has met compliance schemes to discuss proposals for reforming the packaging producer responsibility system, which will be part of the forthcoming Resources and Waste Strategy.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the merits of a deposit return scheme for glass bottles.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
Defra continues to work closely with the devolved administrations in delivering our shared ambitions to improve waste and recycling outcomes and promote resource efficiency in the UK.
Last autumn an independent working group set up under the Litter Strategy for England held a call for evidence on measures to reduce littering of drinks containers and promote recycling. The focus was rigid and flexible plastic, glass or metal drinks containers that are sold sealed and used for the sale of alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages, often for consumption ‘on the go’. This included seeking evidence on the costs, benefits and impacts of deposit return schemes. The working group has submitted its report to Ministers, who will make a decision on next steps shortly.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to incentivise the adoption by manufacturers of packaging of environmentally friendly designs.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
On 11 January 2018 we published our 25 Year Environment Plan that stated our ambition to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042 and, in particular, the waste from single use plastics.
As part of delivering this work, we will be exploring how we can develop our producer responsibility schemes to give producers greater incentives to design more resource efficient products, including packaging.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessments his Department made of the potential effects of leaving the EU on the Government’s commitment to tackle air pollution and decarbonisation.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
The Government is fully committed to tackling air pollution and climate change and that is independent of being a member of the EU. We have put in place a £3.5 billion plan to improve air quality. The UK also has ambitious, international targets in place to significantly reduce emissions of five damaging air pollutants by 2020 and 2030 and we are developing a Clean Air Strategy to deliver these goals. We will continue to work with member states of the EU in achieving cleaner air, recognising the transboundary nature of some pollutants.
The European Union (Withdrawal) Bill is designed to ensure that, as far as possible, the same rules and laws will apply on the day after we leave as on the day before. It will be for Parliament (and in some cases for the devolved legislatures) to make any future changes in legislation after we have left the EU.
With regards to decarbonisation, whatever the nature of the future UK-EU relationship, the UK will remain committed to international efforts to tackle climate change. Our domestic legislation - the Climate Change Act – requires us to make ambitious reductions, more than those required of us by the EU.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of Welsh farmers receive direct payments and rural development support.
Answered by George Eustice
The Welsh Government administers payments and provides rural development support to Welsh farmers. Therefore this is a matter for the devolved administration.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to match existing levels of Common Agricultural Policy funding after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
The Government has pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament, expected in 2022. This provides a greater level of security and certainty for farmers and landowners than anywhere else in the EU, where funding is guaranteed only until 2020.