Justin Tomlinson MP has welcomed Government efforts to ensure the environment is passed to the next generation in a better state than it is has been in decades.
The Government has launched a call for evidence on using the tax system or creating new charges to address the problem of single-use plastic waste.
From coffee cups to takeaway boxes, the UK produces millions of tonnes of single-use plastic waste each year, and the Government is calling on all areas of society to help them examine how changes to the tax system or the introduction of new charges could help us move to a greener economy.
Earlier this year the Government launched its 25 Year Plan to Improve the Environment, part of which included looking at the possibility of introducing charges for single-use plastics.
This call for evidence will enable the Government to examine how changes to the tax system or the introduction of new charges could change the behaviour of companies and consumers for good. The Government will consider all options for using the tax system to address single-use plastic waste and to drive innovation, and will use the evidence gathered from this call to inform that process.
Measures taken so far to address the issue of plastic pollution have included:
- Legislating to ban microbeads: A ban on the manufacture of products containing microbeads came into force on the 9 January and a ban on their sale will come into effect in July
- Doubling maximum litter fines to £150 to clean up our streets: Local authorities impose fines for littering within a range set by central government, currently between £50-80 and a default fine of £75 applies. From next month, the new range will be £65-150, with a default of £100.
- Requiring large retailers to charge 5p for all single-use plastic carrier bags: This has seen nine billion fewer carrier bags being distributed, a fall of 83%. Money raised from the charge – £95 million so far – has been donated to environmental, educational, and other good causes
Justin Tomlinson MP said: “It's right to take bold action to become a world leader in tackling the scourge of single-use plastic littering our streets, countryside and coastline. We will have all seen from Blue Planet 2 how much harm these products do and we must look at all options to address this. I would encourage anyone with useful ideas and suggestions to contribute to this consultation.”
For more information on the consultation see: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/tackling-the-plastic-problem
