Consultation on proposals to ban the distribution and/or sale of plastic straws, plastic - stemmed cotton buds and plastic drink stirrers in England.

Overview

The purpose of this consultation is to gather views from stakeholders on the proposals to ban the distribution and/or sale of plastic straws, plastic - stemmed cotton buds and plastic drink stirrers in England. The proposed ban aims to further protect the environment from plastic pollution.

Why your views matter

The government wants to leave our environment in a better state than we found it. The 25 Year Environment Plan that was published on 11 January outlines the steps that will be undertaken to achieve that ambition, including new measures to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste. A ban on the distribution and/or sale of plastic straws, plastic drinks stirrers and plastic-stemmed cotton buds in England (subject to a consultation), was announced by the Prime Minister at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit held in April. These single use plastics are associated with negative effects on the environment if they are littered or discarded incorrectly after their use. Not only do they damage terrestrial and marine life, there are costs associated with their clean-up and externality costs imposed on the tourism and fishing industries when they are incorrectly disposed of. This consultation aims to address the impact of plastic straws, plastic stemmed cotton buds and plastic drink stirrers on the environment. Everyone is welcome to reply to this consultation including manufacturers, trade representatives, retailers, wholesalers, environmental groups, waste management organisations, scientists, Non-Governmental organisations and members of the public.

If you would like to keep in contact with us to express interest in this, or any other Defra consultation, please give us your details through the link below

https://gov.smartwebportal.co.uk/defra/public/webform.asp?id=108&id2=1D06F7