Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the role of his Department is on contributing to UK implementation of UN Sustainable Development Goal 12 on sustainable consumption and production.

HM Treasury supports the wider work of the government on this issue through spending but also sets environmental tax policy, encouraging more sustainable production and consumption.

For example, the Carbon Price Support incentivises investment in renewable energy and has contributed to a rapid decline in the use of coal in power generation. This helps to deliver cleaner energy for manufacturers and consumers. In the construction industry, the Aggregates Levy is shifting demand towards recycled and byproduct building materials and reducing the need to quarry for new materials. Tax is also transforming how we deal with waste. Since the Landfill Tax was introduced in 2000, the amount of waste going to landfill has decreased by 65% in the UK. Recycling has increased from 18% to 44% over the same period.

HM Treasury is now exploring how the tax system or charges could be used to make the production and consumption of single-use plastics more sustainable. The Chancellor further supported this goal by committing £20m to businesses and universities, acting now to stimulate new thinking and rapid solutions in this area.