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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to include glass in the deposit return scheme.

Glass drink bottles will not be captured by the deposit return scheme for drinks containers (DRS) in England and Northern Ireland. Conversations with packaging manufacturers on scope of materials in the DRS have been consistent with the position that was outlined in the Government’s consultation response in January 2023.

In England and Northern Ireland, glass drinks bottles will remain in scope of the Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR) as will all other types of glass packaging. pEPR will place recycling targets on producers in relation to glass packaging and require relevant obligated producers to cover the costs of collecting and managing glass packaging arising in household waste. As part of finalising our plans for pEPR, we will be confirming future recycling targets for all packaging materials shortly.