Written questions by Robertson.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 43334 on WRAP: Publications, what the (a) title and (b) date of publication is of each publication produced by the Waste and Resources Action Programme through funding from his Department.

A list of Defra funded WRAP publications for the last 3 years, including the title and date of publication is attached.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Extended Producer Responsibility measures in relation to glass on the cost of a (a) bottled beer and (b) pint of beer in a pub.

In October 2024, the Government published an updated assessment of the impact of introducing the pEPR scheme on packaging producers as a whole. This impact assessment did not split the assessment by sector. On 20 December 2024 Defra published the third version of pEPR illustrative base fees for year 1 ahead of PackUK releasing formal communications in June 2025. Base fees, to invoice producers from October 2025, are expected to be calculated in June 2025 using data reported by producers for the full year of 2024. Fees will apply to bottled beer, but not a pint of beer served in a pub as this is served without packaging. The Government has worked closely with industry, including the glass sector, throughout development of pEPR and developing the methodology for base fees. Feedback from stakeholders was factored into finalising the regulations, including formally consulting stakeholders on a draft of the pEPR regulations in 2023.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 43345 on WRAP: Finance, if he will itemise the work programme for which WRAP received the grant in 2025-26.

The itemised work programme for which WRAP has received DEFRA funding (now finalised at £5,949,500) is summarised below: Packaging Extended Producer Responsibility Project: Ensure Local Authority payments reflect efficient packaging waste management under the Extended Producer Responsibility scheme.Circular Economy Strategy: Support Defra by evaluating feedback from UK Plastics Pact, Food & Drink Pact, and Textiles 2030; provide evidence-based insights.Simpler Recycling Project: Deliver technical support and interventions, procurement support, modelling, guidance implementation planning to Local Authorities and Material Facilities Collectors.Food Waste Collections Workstream: Assist the Regulator in approving household food waste collection and bulking systems through design of interventions.Organics Sector Engagement Workstream: Assess impacts on gate fees and processing capacity based on sector feedback.Net Zero Tools Programme Provide advice, manage the Local Authority Portal, and update datasets.Recycle Now Campaign: Deliver a national citizen-facing recycling awareness campaign.Data & Insights: Support Defra with Greenhouse Gas emission factors, Recycling Tracker analysis, and publication.Voluntary Agreements: Govern the Plastics Pact, Courtauld Commitment, and Textiles 2030.Food Waste Reduction: Influence retail practices and support household food waste reduction through engagement and interventions.Food Strategy: Finalise and promote Scope 3 Protocols; support the Food Data Transparency Partnership.Water Roadmap: Coordinate governance and delivery of the UK Food & Drink Pact Water Roadmap.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many Environment Agency staff worked on compliance with requirements for office workplace recycling in the most recent period for which data is available.

The corporate estate of the Environment Agency (EA), including offices and depots, is centrally managed by Defra. Many of the EA’s workplaces are shared spaces across the Defra group as a result. Defra group Facilities Management are specifically responsible for all workplace services across the group, which includes workplace recycling.

Food and Rural Affairs, what research his Department has commissioned on the potential role of insect protein in (a) animal and (b) human diets in the last ten years.

Defra’s scientific research is exploring ways to reduce environmental impacts of livestock production, including research to better understand the role of insect protein in pig and poultry feed (not human diets) in addressing this aim. Examples include a scientific review of the opportunities for the inclusion of insect protein in pig and poultry feed within the UK (2021). Research also considered insect-based proteins (for food and feed), as part of a wider review of alternative proteins (2022). A life-cycle assessment of UK insect protein production compared the environmental impacts of insect, soy and fishmeal protein production for animal feeds in the UK (2023). Defra has also committed funding via the Farming Innovation Programme and Farming Innovation Pathways for projects looking at insect protein in animal feed, including a themed competition addressing on farm protein. The FSA report on the ‘The Future of Animal Feed’ was published in April 2023. The report analysed the production and supply of protein for the global livestock sector, focusing on the potential opportunities, and threats, of alternative feeds. Under food law, it is the responsibility of food businesses to ensure food is safe. Edible insects, as novel foods, need authorisation from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS), which requires provision of a safety case. Food businesses wanting an authorisation will develop the research and evidence to demonstrate the food is safe for consumption.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Extended Producer Responsibility is a tax.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) decides the classification of taxes, while the Office of Budgetary Responsibility (OBR) determines how they are treated in fiscal forecasts. In earlier fiscal events OBR have treated pEPR fees as adjustment to departmental budgets as “there was previously not enough detail on the fees for this to be reflected as a tax in our receipts forecast”. The OBR determination is a technical classification that has no effect on pEPR policy. This technical classification does not affect the distribution of revenue to local authorities. Revenue from pEPR will be distributed directly by PackUK, the scheme administrator, to local authorities.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 43345 on WRAP: Finance, if he will provide the hyperlink to the grant agreement .

The grant agreement contains commercially sensitive information and will not be published. Details of the grant will be published on the Grants register held at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-grants-data-and-statistics. This information is published retrospectively with data for the 2024/25 grant published later this year. Details of the 2025/26 grant will be published in 2026.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the agreement between the EU and UK to create a sanitary and phytosanitary agreement of 19 May 2025, whether agri‑food tech exports would be required to meet (a) UK and (b) EU rules.

The EU have accepted there will need to be a number of areas where we need to retain our own rules. The details of these are subject to negotiation, but we have been clear about the importance of being able to set high animal welfare standards, support public health, and support the use of new and innovative technologies.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to take steps to ensure that UK Deposit Management Organisation Ltd includes representation from (a) small businesses and (b) the wider beverage industry.

Small businesses, including small producers and retailers, are key to the success of the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drinks containers. During the development of DRS policy and legislation, the Government worked closely with small businesses and their trade associations through dedicated sub-groups. The appointment of UK Deposit Management Organisation Limited (UK DMO) has been made by government, effective from 2nd May 2025 as the operator of the DRS for single-use plastic and metal drinks containers across England and Northern Ireland. UK DMO are continuing the engagement with small business and wider beverage industry representatives via their Advisory Group and their views must be taken into account as delivery of the DRS progresses. UK DMO itself is an organisation that represents a significant portion of the UK drinks and retail sectors. The DMO application process has ensured that there is a wide representation of industry needs on the DMO Board. UK DMO also has an Advisory Group, which will include small businesses representation.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to review the inclusion of (a) plastic containers and (b) metal cans in the extended producer responsibility scheme following the rollout of the deposit return scheme in 2027.

The Government is not currently considering changes to the scope of pEPR or Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). The DRS regulation sets out the requirement for the Government to conduct a post implementation review of the DRS to consider its effectiveness, costs, and benefits. This will be conducted once the scheme has been operational for enough time to allow sufficient data to be available. When considering whether the scope of the scheme needs to be updated, the department would be open to considering the views of those managing the DRS and those who represent materials which could be considered as part of the scope of a DRS in the future. Any changes being considered would be subject to the standard practices of consultation and analysis / impact assessment development. Such reviews would also need to consider associated policies, such as extended producer responsibility for packaging, which captures all non-DRS packaging. Potential changes to the materials scope would also need to reflect the additional costs from infrastructure requirements such as changes to collection, logistics, retrofitting, and equipment lifespan.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to include glass in the deposit return scheme from 2027.

The Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drinks containers in England will include single-use drinks containers from 150ml to 3 litres. Materials included are polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, steel, and aluminium drink containers In England, Northern Ireland and Scotland, glass is not in scope of DRS. Instead, glass will be included in the scope of the Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging scheme, to make sure it is appropriately and efficiently recycled. The government’s position is that glass in DRS would add considerable upfront cost and create complex challenges to delivery, particularly for the hospitality and retail sectors. It will also disproportionately impact small breweries and be inconvenient for consumers due to its weight and potential for breakage in transit to a return point. The decision to exclude glass drinks containers from DRS was taken following extensive reviewing of evidence and engagement with industry stakeholders. This includes glass producers, who, at the time, were strongly in favour of glass exclusion from DRS and inclusion in pEPR.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether the (a) Extended Producer Responsibility and (b) Deposit Return Scheme thresholds for beverage manufacturers are applied (i) per‑brand and (ii) according to the size of the parent company.

If a business is the brand owner of the packaging, then they must include this when determining how much packaging they handle. There is guidance available on gov.uk and the ‘Extended producer responsibility for packaging: Regulators’ agreed positions and technical interpretations’ guidance to support producers in understanding their obligation. Businesses should continue to send their compliance queries to the regulators. We have included in the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) in England regulations, a low volume products exemption to support micro producers selling less than 5,000 units per product line per year. These products can be exempt from DRS if the producer chooses to, by registering those products with the Deposit Management Organisation (DMO).

Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to review extended producer responsibility fees.

Producers were required to submit their final 2024 data by 1 April 2025. Following this deadline, we are conducting regulatory checks. Once checks are conducted to an appropriate level, we will use 2024 data and insight from regulator checks to publish pEPR base fees in June 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether beverage industry manufacturers will be required to pay the Extended Producer Responsibility levy if they sell their products in the on-trade market with proof from the vendor of a non-council-funded recycling scheme.

The current regulations do not allow for this. This is because there are real challenges in effectively applying and compliance monitoring such an exemption across all sectors and producer types, resulting in a significant risk of misreporting and fraud. Government however recognises the strong views of stakeholders and is looking again at the household packaging definition. A new period of stakeholder engagement on this issue will commence shortly.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether a UK-based beverage manufacturer can accept returns of all recyclable product packaging to offset their Extended Producer Responsibility levy.

Existing provisions in the pEPR regulations only allow for offsets from disposal cost fees for: packaging that is not commonly collected by Local Authorities for recycling, defined as packaging collected by less than 75% of Local Authorities; orreusable packaging that has been used at least once and has become waste where that packaging is collected by a producer and recycled.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to introduce a requirement for tethered caps on drinks before 2029.

There are no plans to introduce a tethered caps requirement before 2029.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ban bottom trawling within more English Marine Protected Areas.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath on 13 November 2024, PQ 13315.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to increase the number of highly protected marine areas in English waters.

Defra is undertaking a review of the English Marine Protected Area network to look at whether sites are in the right places with the right protection. The review will explore ways to update protection and management approaches to better address the nature crisis and improve climate change resilience, while supporting wider Government priorities. Highly Protected Marine Areas are part of the scope of this review and whilst we currently have no plans for designating additional HPMAs we will assess what we have learned so far from the first 3 sites designated in 2023.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to ban deliberate breeding of domestic cats with non-domestic felid species.

The Government welcomes the Animal Welfare Committee’s Opinion on the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices. We are carefully considering the Committee’s recommendations.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of the Animal Welfare Committee’s report entitled Opinion on the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices, published on 19 December 2024; and whether he plans to ban the breeding of cats with extreme characteristics which could have a detrimental effect on (a) their health and (b) that of their offspring.

The Government welcomes the Animal Welfare Committee’s Opinion on the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices. We are carefully considering the Committee’s recommendations.