Lord Harlech (Con)

My Lords, I thank my noble friend Lord Randall of Uxbridge for bringing the Bill before your Lordships’ House and the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett of Manor Castle, for her valuable contribution to the debate. The Bill raises the issue of microplastic pollution, over which there is increasing concern. An evidence base is emerging that microplastics can cause harm both ecologically and to human health. The World Health Organization has highlighted the need for further research into its impacts but, as a precaution, we should continue to reduce plastic pollution. Indeed, consumers and producers are increasingly aware of their environmental responsibilities, and many go beyond what the Government already require. On domestic washing machines specifically, the House of Lords Library in its recent research note on the Bill estimated that they discharge anything between 6,490 and 87,165 tonnes of microfibres in the UK each year. That is quite a large margin, and it evidences the need for further research. The health and environmental risks present reasons why households may want to apply microfibre filters, which can then be disposed of as solid waste. Indeed, these can be retrofitted on to existing machines. However, the cost of these filters can vary significantly, as does their effectiveness. The Bill would mandate that such filters must catch at least 90% of microplastics, when measured by mass. However, as was stated by the previous Conservative Government in April 2023, the effectiveness is also dependent on user behaviour. Furthermore, we need to have a clearer understanding of what costs this would impose on households as well as industry before pressing ahead with such regulations. Our position as His Majesty’s loyal Opposition has not changed. We expect the industry to continue innovating and developing microfibre filters, and we of course support efforts to research the issues more thoroughly. As a result, we do not yet believe this issue warrants primary legislation. That is not to say that we are not serious about curbing plastic pollution; on the contrary, the Bill would not tackle the sources of plastic pollution upstream. Therefore, I am pleased that this debate has allowed us to raise awareness of the issue and discuss how best we can tackle plastic pollution. It is in that spirit that I thank my noble friend Lord Randall of Uxbridge for his hard work. I look forward to hearing the insights of other noble Lords and the Minister’s response.