Written questions by Roberts.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to protect funding for nature restoration programmes in Wales after the conclusion of funding from the EU LIFE programme.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of pubs and breweries which pay costs associated with the management of packaging waste under the Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme who also manage their packaging waste through private waste contracts.

Packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (pEPR) obligates brands and packaging producers to pay the costs of managing household packaging waste. In most cases, this will not be individual pubs but the business supplying the pub with packaged goods where they have an annual turnover of £2 million or more and are responsible for supplying or importing more than 50 Tonnes of packaging. It is up to individual producers whether to pass these costs on to their customers. 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.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme on the financial sustainability of (a) pubs and (b) breweries in Wales.

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. The Government has worked closely with industry, including the brewing sector, throughout development of Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (pEPR). Feedback from stakeholders was factored into finalising the regulations, including formally consulting stakeholders on a draft of the pEPR regulations in 2023. pEPR obligates brands and packaging producers to pay the costs of managing household packaging waste. In most cases, this will not be individual pubs but the business supplying the pub with packaged goods. My officials have recently attended a number of events organised by the brewing industry, to discuss pEPR and to listen and respond to concerns raised by their members. We have provided extensive guidance to all sectors on how to comply with their obligations under pEPR and continue to work with the brewing sector and others to further refine both the guidance and the wider scheme.