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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the current plastic recycling system.

In England plastic is widely collected for recycling across local authorities. 45% of plastic packaging waste was recycled in 2017, exceeding the EU target of 22.5%.

As part of our Resources and Waste Strategy, the Government analysed the challenges currently facing the recycling industry in this country. Through the Strategy, the Government set out how it would tackle these challenges, including making producers more responsible for the packaging they put on the market and making recycling simpler for households. We want all local waste authorities to collect the same core set of materials for recycling. We also want to introduce a deposit return system. This will increase the quantity and quality of recyclable material collected. Our approach, from production through consumption to end of life, is focused on increasing supply and demand for secondary materials to be recycled in the UK.

Our ambition is to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste over the lifetime of the 25 Year Environmental Plan. For the most problematic plastics we are going faster, which is why we have committed to working towards all plastic packaging placed on the UK market being recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025.