Environmental campaigners have critisised the government’s “inaction” on limiting single-use plastics and are now calling for a ban to be introduced as quickly as possible.
Environmentalists City to Sea and campaign group 38 Degrees have said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has a “foot-dragging approach to tackling plastic pollution.”
The groups first launched a consultation on the issue a year ago and now claim Defra is being inactive on implementing a ban.
This comes as England is the only country in Europe without legislation to ban polluting single-use plastics such as plastic plates and cutlery, as well as expanded and extruded polystyrene cups and food containers.
The government’s proposed start date currently stands at April 2023, however campaigners now fear that inaction could see this deadline missed and of 51,462 supporters of the consultation, 64% said the ban should kick in even sooner.
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“We were promised a Green Brexit. Instead, we’re spending years chasing Defra to implement the very basic environmental standards that have been in place across Europe now for years. Their foot-dragging approach to tackling plastic pollution stands in stark contrast to the rhetoric of being ‘world leaders’ in tackling plastic pollution,” City to Sea policy manager, Steve Hynd said.
“It’s time we lived up to our own billing. Let’s crack on and ban the most polluting items, set legally binding targets for reduction, and transition to reuse and refill. Then, and only then, we can play the role of “world leaders” in pulling together an ambitious global plastics treaty.
“This option is open to the UK, but we need this government to start by playing catch up with other countries that have already introduced a ban on these most polluting single-use items like cutlery and polystyrene cups. This is the very minimum they should be doing.”
38 Degrees head of campaigns, Megan Bentall added: “The Government asked what the public thought about banning these unnecessary and polluting plastic items, and the response couldn’t have been clearer. More than 50,000 people took the time to participate in a detailed consultation and yet, ever since, the Government seems to have been dragging its feet.
“After a year of inaction – in which companies have continued to churn out harmful, polluting and wasteful plastics – it’s time to see a proper ban. The public overwhelmingly supports such a ban – and they won’t accept further delays.”
