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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance he plans to issue on sufficient sorting requirements for material recovery facilities to follow.

Defra does not plan to issue specific guidance on sorting requirements for Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs).

Simpler Recycling requires the following recyclable waste streams from all households and workplaces in England: glass, metal, plastic, paper and card, food waste (and garden waste from households only). These measures will increase the quantity of dry recyclable material collected for sorting at MRFS and will apply from 31^st March 2025 from workplaces, 31^st March 2026 from households and 31^st March 2027 from micro-firms (with less than 10 FTEs.

Defra is working with WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) and waste industry representatives to support Material Recovery Facility (MRF) readiness for the Simpler Recycling requirements.

We have engaged with MRF operators and local authorities through WRAP’s MRF Forum to identify challenges with MRF capacity, investment, upgrade timelines, and to work with the sector to identify interventions to support MRFs as they prepare for Simpler Recycling. WRAP is developing interventions to support Local Authorities setting up new MRF contracts or procurement of other resources associated with implementation of Simpler Recycling requirements. An assessment is being undertaken of the potential future composition of dry mixed recyclable waste streams and the associated financial implications resulting from this.