A major plastic ban comes into force from October – what you need to know
UK businesses must no longer supply, sell or offer certain single-use plastic items in England, including plastic straws, plastic-stemmed cotton buds, and plastic stirrers from 1 October.
The ban covers both online and over-the-counter sales, and includes all types of single-use plastics, including those labelled as biodegradable, compostable, or recycled and covers both new and existing stock.
"Single use" plastics are designed to be used only once for their original purpose and the ban will affect retailers, takeaways, food vendors and the hospitality industry.
The move follows on from the introduction of the single-use carrier bag charge, which rose from 5p to 10p in May 2021, in an attempt to take plastic bags out of circulation.
Read more: Switch to electric cars and heat pumps at risk after weakening of climate targets
Earlier this year businesses were warned to prepare for the deadline by using up existing stock of these items, finding reusable alternatives and using different materials for single-use items.
Continuing to supply banned single-use plastics after 1 October may result in fines.
Local authorities will conduct inspections to ensure compliance, and they have the power to order businesses to cover the cost of investigations for non-compliance.
If a business receives a fine and believes it did everything reasonably possible to comply, it can appeal within 28 days.
Plastic straws
Businesses and takeaways will be prohibited from providing plastic straws to customers. Instead they should offer environmentally-friendly alternatives like paper or biodegradable straws.
There are exemptions for medical reasons, so plastic straws can still be provided to customers with specific needs.
Registered pharmacies will still supply single-use plastic straws, but can't display or advertise them in-store, only online, according to guidelines.
Read more: Home insulation take-up low despite £1bn government drive and soaring energy bills
Restaurants, clubs, and similar places can provide plastic straws with immediate-consumption food and drinks but must keep them hidden, offer only upon request, and not promote them.
Care homes, schools and places of detention will still be able to supply plastic straws.
Plastic-stemmed cotton buds
Businesses will need to switch to alternative cotton buds with stems made from paper or other sustainable materials such as bamboo.
Exemptions cover supplying for medical, forensic, scientific purposes such as research and diagnosis.
Plastic stirrers
Plastic stirrers, commonly used in coffee shops and takeaways, will also banned.
Businesses should replace them with stirrers made from more sustainable materials, like wood or metal.
Plates, bowls and trays
The supply and public sale of single-use plastic plates, trays and bowls will also be banned.
However, you can still supply these items if you're providing them to another business or if they are used as packaging, particularly if they are pre-filled or filled at the point of sale.
For instance, this applies to pre-filled salad bowls, ready meals packaged in trays, plates filled at takeaway counters, or trays used for food deliveries.
Read more: Energy bills: What to expect this winter
There are no exemptions for the ban on single-use plastic cutlery or balloon sticks.
The supply of ready-to-consume food and drinks in polystyrene containers, including polystyrene cups, is also prohibited. This includes both expanded and extruded polystyrene.
Businesses can still supply food or drink in polystyrene containers if it needs further preparation before it is consumed, this includes adding water, microwaving or toasting.
Why the ban?
According to government estimates, England uses 2.7 billion items of single-use cutlery and 721 million single-use plates per year, but only 10% are recycled.
Brits also go through 4.7 billion plastic straws, 316 million plastic stirrers and 1.8 billion plastic-stemmed cotton buds each year.
In January 2022 the government announced that 95% of Brits were in favour of single-use plastic bans.
Read more: Energy saving home hacks for under £100
Environment minister Rebecca Pow also hinted at further measures including “ambitious plans for a deposit return scheme for drinks containers and consistent recycling collections in England”.
Friends of the Earth plastic campaigner Siôn Elis Williams welcomed the move, saying: "The ban on plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds is welcome news, but these items are just a fraction of the plastic rubbish that pours into our environment and threatens our wildlife."
Watch: Countries divided over UN negotiations on treaty to tackle 'worsening plastics crisis'
Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android.
