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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that extended producer responsibility requirements are implemented fairly.

An extensive programme of engagement remains ongoing with between Defra and the many organisations obligated by the Extended Producer Responsibility requirements. Our intention has been to ensure that our stakeholders feel that not only are they heard, but that we are taking their concerns on board. Engagement has so far included an eight-week series of ‘vision sprints’, regular, dedicated forums for business, local authorities and compliance groups, a programme-focused monthly newsletter to keep stakeholders updated, topic-specific webinars and, more recently, 1-to-1 conversations around co-design.

Separately, in recent weeks I have also met with my equivalent ministers in the Devolved Administrations to, again, listen to their concerns as we move forward together.

Throughout this engagement we are determined to ensure our reforms are balanced and proportionate and take into account a wide breadth of views. In implementing the reforms we will continue to engage widely with all interested stakeholders to develop a scheme that has broad buy-in from across the sector.