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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures they are taking to reduce ocean pollution.

The UK Government is committed to leading efforts to protect the marine environment from all human-induced stressors. Marine litter is one of the greatest environmental challenges we face with 80% of marine plastic litter originating from land-based sources, and predictions of a threefold increase in the amount of plastics in the ocean between 2015 and 2025.

Domestically, assessments in the UK Marine Strategy Part One (published in October 2019) show that Good Environmental Status for contaminants in UK waters has largely been achieved, though not yet for marine litter. The UK Marine Strategy Part Three (published in December 2015) sets out the comprehensive list of actions that the UK Government is taking to reduce contaminant concentrations in the marine environment to acceptable levels. Existing measures include various pollution reduction requirements for emissions and discharges from industry, and measures for coastal waters that are set out in the River Basin Management Plans. We intend to publish an update to Part Three this year, outlining the programme of measures that will continue to move us towards Good Environmental Status in our seas.

Our 25 Year Environment Plan also establishes our target of reducing all forms of marine plastic pollution where possible, with our Resources and Waste Strategy setting out how we will achieve this. The Strategy includes a commitment to review and consult on measures such as Extended Producer Responsibility for fishing gear by 2022.

Given the trans-boundary nature of the marine environment, we work closely with other countries to tackle pollution, for example through the OSPAR Convention. The UK also contributes to and implements the obligations of several global initiatives, including the London Protocol and the London Convention, to protect the marine environment from mercury, persistent organic pollutants, hazardous wastes, hazardous chemicals, pesticides and marine litter.

In 2018, the UK and Vanuatu launched the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance, a Blue Charter Action Group, now comprising 34 countries, each pledging action on plastic pollution. To support this work, the UK has committed up to £70 million to tackle plastics pollution entering our ocean. This includes boosting global research, supporting developing countries to address ambitions under the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance, as well as testing and finding alternative ways in which plastics can be reduced, reused or recycled and making efforts to transition to more sustainable forms of manufacturing.

The UK has also launched a £500 million Blue Planet Fund, financed from Official Development Assistance, to help eligible countries protect their marine resources from key human-generated threats including climate change, marine pollution such as marine litter, overfishing and biodiversity loss.

Due to the scale of the marine litter challenge, the UK believes it is also time to start negotiations on a new global agreement on marine litter and microplastics at the United Nations Environment Assembly. This would build on the important work we are doing to tackle marine litter both domestically and internationally and support our commitments to eliminate plastic entering the ocean.