Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made on the implementation of the Automatic-sorting for Circularity in Textiles UK pilot; what funding he has provided to that pilot; and what safeguards are in place to ensure that materials processed through that scheme are retained for domestic reprocessing.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The total cost of the Autosort for Circular Textiles Innovation Demonstrator was £4,128,228, with nearly £1.5 million of funding provided by industry and private investors.
One of the project’s aims was to ensure that the processed material was retained through domestic reprocessing. UK Fashion and Textile served as the lead partner, with supporting the UK textile manufacturing sector as one of their key objectives.
In addition, Innovate UK provided robust monitoring throughout the project to ensure it remained within its original scope, which we can confirm it did.
Although the funding phase has concluded, we continue to support this project and its partners to generate economic value that can be retained within the UK.
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. The Government has convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help develop the first ever Circular Economy Strategy for England, which we plan to publish for consultation in the coming autumn. The Circular Economy Taskforce will initially focus on six sectors that have the greatest potential to grow the economy: textiles; agri-food; built environment; chemicals and plastics; electrical and electronic equipment; and transport. The Circular Economy Taskforce will assess what interventions may be needed across the textiles sector.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
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 recycling infrastructure in handling textile waste from fast fashion.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
While we do not hold any internal estimates on fast fashion waste volumes in the UK, industry partners provide some insight. WRAP estimates that the UK generated approximately 1.45 million tonnes of post-consumer textiles in 2022, which includes clothing, household linens and more. WRAP-Textiles-Market-Situation-Report-2024.pdf
WRAP does not isolate a proportion of this as fast fashion. However, they note that low-quality textile goods are saturating secondary markets, with the average person in the UK throwing 35 items of unwanted textiles straight into the general waste each year, demonstrating the fast turnover of clothing. The price of our addiction to cheap fast fashion as pressure builds on UK second hand clothing market | WRAP - The Waste and Resources Action Programme
Meanwhile, figures from BusinessWaste indicate that 300,000 tonnes of clothing waste enter household bins annually in the UK, with much of this likely being fast fashion. Fashion Waste Statistics & Facts | Textile & Clothing Waste Facts
The department hasn't made any recent assessments on the effectiveness of recycling infrastructure, however we continue to monitor evidence. Within the Circular Economy Strategy, the Government is developing policy measures to improve circularity in the textiles sector.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of trends in the level of short-lifespan garments produced by ultrafast fashion brands; and whether he plans to introduce (a) product standards and (b) import-related duties to reduce waste from those products.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. The Government has convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help develop the first ever Circular Economy Strategy for England, which we plan to publish for consultation in the coming autumn.
The Circular Economy Taskforce will initially focus on six sectors that have the greatest potential to grow the economy: textiles; agri-food; built environment; chemicals and plastics; electrical and electronic equipment; and transport.
The Taskforce has been extensively engaging with industry leaders, trade associations, and other key stakeholders to ensure that the Strategy reflects the needs and insights of all involved.
As we develop the strategy, we will consider the evidence for action right across the economy, and alongside The Circular Economy Taskforce we will assess what interventions may be needed across the textiles sector. The Taskforce will consider evidence across a range of interventions.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to bring forward regulations on the fast fashion industry.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. The government has convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help develop the first ever Circular Economy Strategy for England, which we plan to publish for consultation in due course.
The Circular Economy Taskforce will initially focus on six sectors that have the greatest potential to grow the economy: textiles; agri-food; built environment; chemicals and plastics; electrical and electronic equipment; and transport.
The Taskforce has been extensively engaging with industry leaders, trade associations, and other key stakeholders to ensure that the Strategy reflects the needs and insights of all involved.
As we develop the strategy, we will consider the evidence for action right across the economy, and alongside The Circular Economy Taskforce we will assess what interventions may be needed across the textiles sector. The Taskforce will consider evidence across a range of interventions.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to introduce extended producer responsibility regulations for fashion retailers.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help develop the first ever Circular Economy Strategy for England, which it plans to publish for consultation in the coming autumn.
The Circular Economy Taskforce will initially focus on six sectors that have the greatest potential to grow the economy, one of which is Textiles. The Circular Economy Taskforce recognises the importance of an extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme for textiles. As we develop the strategy, we will consider the evidence for action right across the economy and evaluate what interventions may be needed, including but not limited to EPR.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent estimate he has made of the volume of textile waste generated from fast fashion annually.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
While we do not hold any internal estimates on fast fashion waste volumes in the UK, industry partners provide some insight. WRAP estimates that the UK generated approximately 1.45 million tonnes of post-consumer textiles in 2022, which includes clothing, household linens and more. WRAP does not isolate a proportion of this as fast fashion. However, they note that low-quality textile goods are saturating secondary markets, with the average person in the UK throwing 35 items of unwanted textiles straight into the general waste each year, demonstrating the fast turnover of clothing. Meanwhile, figures from BusinessWaste indicate that 300,000 tonnes of clothing waste enter household bins annually in the UK, with much of this likely being fast fashion.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will visit the new Robotics Living Lab at the Manchester Fashion Institute, Manchester Metropolitan University, to make an assessment of the potential merits of this example of investment by the UKRI Arts and Humanities Research Council CReSca World Class Lab funding for innovative technology for sustainable fashion manufacturing.
Answered by Feryal Clark
The Robotics Living Lab was awarded £3.8 million from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) through its World Class Labs programme. This represents an outstanding example of how public funding for university-driven and interdisciplinary research can attract private investment, and the government is delighted that it is now leading the future of textiles and fashion.
As part of the Industrial Strategy, the government recently published the Creative Industries Sector Plan to cement the UK’s position as a global creative powerhouse by 2035. A £100 million UKRI investment over the Spending Review will support the ambitious next wave of R&D creative clusters throughout the UK.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the UK fashion industry’s contribution to (a) economic growth and (b) employment in the UK.
Answered by Gareth Thomas
The department engages with key businesses and trade associations across the UK to support the fashion and textiles industry’s resilience and growth, including export support. The department has strong relationships with the British Fashion Council and the UK Fashion and Textiles Association (UKFT). The latest report from the UKFT estimates the industry contributed around £62 billion to UK GDP in 2021, supporting 1.3 million jobs across the country.
Our Industrial Strategy will support fashion and the whole economy through an improved operating environment, long-term stability and greater dynamism for new entrants to emerge.
Asked by: John Lamont (Conservative - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he has taken to support UK (a) brands and (b) manufacturers with a potential influx of fast fashion, in the context of the UK-India trade deal.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Helping our world-class textiles industry extend its influence worldwide is important for our Plan for Change, with several businesses in the sector expressing support for our new trade deal with India.
This agreement will mean increased choice for consumers and cheaper imports for businesses and give UK businesses an edge over international competitors when entering India's rapidly growing market.
We have included a bilateral safeguard mechanism which allows us to temporarily increase tariffs if an industry is suffering or facing the threat of serious injury as a result of reduced duties in the FTA.
The Department continues to engage with stakeholders to monitor the impact of the deal and ensure that UK businesses can compete on a level playing field.
The Government is reviewing the customs treatment of low value imports, and intends to engage stakeholders through existing channels, which will inform a decision on whether to launch a consultation later in the year.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the environmental impact of fast fashion.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has not made an assessment of the environmental impact of fast fashion.
The Government is funding action on textiles through the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP). As part of this work, WRAP has produced a number of reports including the Textiles Market Situation Report 2024 which looks at textile consumption, manufacturing and the post-consumer textiles market. This report, as well as a range of WRAP’s other textiles-related reports, are published on their website at: https://www.wrap.ngo/taking-action/textiles/key-resources.
WRAP also manages the Textiles 2030 voluntary initiative on our behalf. This supports businesses and organisations within the fashion and textiles industry to transition to more sustainable and circular practices.