The Government published an updated assessment in October 2024 of the impact of introducing Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR) on packaging producers as a whole. The assessment did not provide separate estimates for breweries, pubs or hospitality businesses, or disaggregate impacts at a local level.

The Government is aware of concerns about the classification of packaging that is disposed of through commercial waste streams, including in hospitality settings. Defra continues to work on this issue and that includes working closely with the brewing, hospitality and wider packaging sectors.

This Government is alive to the concerns of the glass industry and Ministers are working across Government to identify appropriate solutions to address pressures facing the sector.

I refer the Hon. Members to the Government's consultations, and accompanying consultation stage impact assessments, on smoke-free, heated tobacco-free, and vape-free places, and on the packaging, device appearance, and display of tobacco, vaping, and nicotine products. The Government will carefully consider the responses before taking decisions on future regulations.

I refer the Hon. Members to the Tobacco and Vapes Bill House of Lords debate on 24 February 2026 in relation to filters. Evidence is still developing and there are no current plans to consult on plain packaging and promotions restrictions. No assessment has been taken on filters being used to circumvent the current flavours ban.

I refer the Hon. Members to the Government's consultations, and accompanying consultation stage impact assessments, on smoke-free, heated tobacco-free, and vape-free places, and on the packaging, device appearance, and display of tobacco, vaping, and nicotine products. The Government will carefully consider the responses before taking decisions on future regulations.

I refer the Hon. Members to the Tobacco and Vapes Bill House of Lords debate on 24 February 2026 in relation to filters. Evidence is still developing and there are no current plans to consult on plain packaging and promotions restrictions. No assessment has been taken on filters being used to circumvent the current flavours ban.

Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging makes producers responsible for costs of managing household packaging when it becomes waste. Obligations are therefore determined by turnover and packaging tonnage, rather than an organisation’s business model or use of profits.

Registered charities are exempt from disposal fees. The Government has no plans to extend this exemption to social enterprises. Businesses with turnover below £2 million and placing less than 50 tonnes of packaging on the market are exempt from disposal fee and recycling obligations.

Defra continues to engage with social enterprises, and their feedback informs its review of the impacts of the scheme.

Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging makes producers responsible for costs of managing household packaging when it becomes waste. Obligations are therefore determined by turnover and packaging tonnage, rather than an organisation’s business model or use of profits.

Registered charities are exempt from disposal fees. The Government has no plans to extend this exemption to social enterprises. Businesses with turnover below £2 million and placing less than 50 tonnes of packaging on the market are exempt from disposal fee and recycling obligations.

Defra continues to engage with social enterprises, and their feedback informs its review of the impacts of the scheme.

The UK's Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (pEPR) scheme and related fees apply equally to products whether they are imported or manufactured in the UK. This helps ensure a level playing field for UK packaging producers, whilst encouraging the use of packaging which is easier to recycle.

In addition, the UK promotes resource efficiency and circular economy objectives through its free trade agreements, including cooperation with partners on environmentally sustainable product design and related product information, including for packaging.

Defra continues to engage extensively with the glass manufacturing sector to understand the impacts on them. Through modulation, more recyclable materials, such as glass, will benefit from discounted fees, from Year 2 of pEPR (2026/2027) onwards. Defra, alongside PackUK and the devolved governments, continues to engage with industry to monitor and support implementation of the Regulations.

pEPR in the UK has some of the most generous support measures for small businesses across any packaging scheme globally, including an exemption from disposal fees and recycling obligations for producers with an annual turnover below £2 million and packaging tonnage below 50 tonnes.

pEPR in the UK has some of the most generous support measures for small businesses across any packaging scheme globally, including an exemption from disposal fees and recycling obligations for producers with an annual turnover below £2 million and packaging tonnage below 50 tonnes.

Community Pharmacies in England are not commissioned nationally to provide blister packs, therefore no assessment has been made on the adequacy of provision. Pharmacies are required to make reasonable adjustments for individual patients with protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010, which can include the blister packs.

On 10 July 2026, the Government launched a United Kingdom-wide consultation on proposals to reduce the appeal and availability of tobacco, vaping and nicotine products, particularly to children and young people. The consultation includes proposals for plain, white packaging for vaping and nicotine products, aligning existing tobacco display restrictions across relevant products, restricting the appearance of vaping and heated tobacco devices, and extending existing tobacco packaging requirements to other tobacco products and tobacco-related devices. The Government will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions.

Internationally, some countries have introduced packaging requirements for vapes and/or nicotine pouches, including Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, and Israel. As these policies have only recently been implemented, there is currently limited evidence on their evaluation. However, research by University College London and Kings College London has found, for example, that plain vape packaging reduced the appeal of vapes to young people without putting off adults who smoke. The proportion of young people who thought their friends would want to try a vape fell from approximately half, or 53%, with branded packaging to about a third, or 38%, with plain packaging, and to around a quarter, or 27%, when flavour descriptions were also limited.

On 10 July 2026, the Government launched a United Kingdom-wide consultation on proposals to reduce the appeal and availability of tobacco, vaping and nicotine products, particularly to children and young people. The consultation includes proposals for plain, white packaging for vaping and nicotine products, aligning existing tobacco display restrictions across relevant products, restricting the appearance of vaping and heated tobacco devices, and extending existing tobacco packaging requirements to other tobacco products and tobacco-related devices. The Government will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions.

Internationally, some countries have introduced packaging requirements for vapes and/or nicotine pouches, including Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, and Israel. As these policies have only recently been implemented, there is currently limited evidence on their evaluation. However, research by University College London and Kings College London has found, for example, that plain vape packaging reduced the appeal of vapes to young people without putting off adults who smoke. The proportion of young people who thought their friends would want to try a vape fell from approximately half, or 53%, with branded packaging to about a third, or 38%, with plain packaging, and to around a quarter, or 27%, when flavour descriptions were also limited.

On 10 July 2026, the Government launched a United Kingdom-wide consultation on proposals to reduce the appeal and availability of tobacco, vaping and nicotine products, particularly to children and young people. The consultation includes proposals for plain, white packaging for vaping and nicotine products, aligning existing tobacco display restrictions across relevant products, restricting the appearance of vaping and heated tobacco devices, and extending existing tobacco packaging requirements to other tobacco products and tobacco-related devices. The Government will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions.

Internationally, some countries have introduced packaging requirements for vapes and/or nicotine pouches, including Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, and Israel. As these policies have only recently been implemented, there is currently limited evidence on their evaluation. However, research by University College London and Kings College London has found, for example, that plain vape packaging reduced the appeal of vapes to young people without putting off adults who smoke. The proportion of young people who thought their friends would want to try a vape fell from approximately half, or 53%, with branded packaging to about a third, or 38%, with plain packaging, and to around a quarter, or 27%, when flavour descriptions were also limited.

The Government published consultation-stage impact assessments covering the potential health benefits, reduced health and social care costs, and other potential impacts from reduced use of products in scope. We will continue to build the evidence base on the anticipated impact of the changes, including through information provided in response to the consultation, and we will carefully consider all consultation responses before making any final policy decisions. Updated impact assessments will follow in due course.

Illustrative pEPR fees for Year 2 (2026/27) were published on Gov.uk in December 2025. PackUK intends to publish confirmed fees for Year 2 and issue Notices of Liabilities to liable producers by the end of November 2026. This follows the final deadline of 1 September 2026 for producers to submit any corrections to their data, so that invoices and fees can be calculated.

A Call for Evidence was launched in October 2025 to gather evidence on a range of topics related to tobacco, vaping, and nicotine products, including on vape tank capacity limits. Following analysis of that call for evidence and further policy development, we intend to consult on tank capacity limits. We continue to discuss these issues with a wide variety of stakeholders, including retail bodies, charities, health organisations, and members of the independent vaping industry.

The Government assessed Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR) through the 2024 impact assessment. pEPR incentivises businesses to reduce unnecessary packaging, increase recyclable materials and improve packaging design by making producers responsible for household packaging waste management costs. From 2026, fees will be modulated using PackUK’s Recyclability Assessment Methodology, with less recyclable packaging attracting higher fees and more recyclable packaging attracting lower fees. Evidence includes the impact assessment, producer-reported data, local authority cost modelling, and extensive consultation and engagement. PackUK’s forthcoming five-year strategy will detail how environmental benefits, including packaging reduction and recycling quality and quantity, will be tracked.

The 2024 impact assessment assessed Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (pEPR) administrative impacts, including producer reporting costs. PackUK is responsible for operating the scheme on behalf of the four UK nations. PackUK administration costs for 2025/26 were £18 million. Local authority payments for 2025/26 were £1.43 billion, covering the efficient costs of managing household packaging waste. Environmental regulators monitor and assure producer compliance and data accuracy. Defra, PackUK, and regulators are improving future fee calculations using refined guidance and calculations, and strengthening compliance activity, which has brought almost 1,800 additional obligated producers into compliance.