Single-use plastic items such as polystyrene cutlery, plates and cups will be banned in England by the end of this year.
UK Environment Secretary Therese Coffey is set to announce the move, which aims to reduce single-use items that end up in rivers and seas, harming wildlife.
Britain’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it was in response to a public consultation on a plan to ban the supply of single-use plastic items and polystyrene food and drink containers.
This ran from November 2021 to February 2022.
Ms Coffey said it would have a “huge impact”, telling UK media: “A plastic fork can take 200 years to decompose – that is two centuries in landfill or polluting our oceans,” reports RTE.
“I am determined to drive forward action to tackle this issue head on. We know there is more to do, and we have again listened to the public’s calls. This new ban will have a huge impact to stop the pollution of billions of pieces of plastic and help to protect the natural environment for future generations,” reports RTE.
The UK government has banned single-use plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds in England in 2020.
Ireland and other EU member states previously implemented a similar move in July 2021, as member states banned single-use plastic plates, cutlery, straws, balloon sticks and cotton buds.
The same measure was also applied to expanded polystyrene jars, food and beverage containers and all oxo-degradable plastic products.
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