The ban on supplying plastic straws, drinks stirrers, and plastic stemmed cotton buds has come into force in England today (1 October).
Originally set for April this year, the implementation of the ban was delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
“The ban on straws, stirrers and cotton buds is just the next step in our battle against plastic pollution and our pledge to protect our ocean and the environment for future generations,” Environment Secretary George Eustice said.
The government has last month announced the extension of the single-use plastic carrier bag charge to include all retailers in England. The minimum charge has been increased to 10p, with the measures taking effect from April 2021.
In England, an estimated 4.7 billion plastic straws, 316 million plastic stirrers and 1.8 billion plastic-stemmed cotton buds are used annually. Around 10 percent of cotton buds are flushed down toilets and can end up in waterways and oceans.
Retail establishments are now prohibited from displaying, supplying or offering to supply plastic straws to customers.
However, plastic straws attached to the packaging of a drink product and intended to be used to consume that drink is exempted from the ban till 3 July 2021.
Use of these products for medical reasons is also exempted. Disabled people and those with medical conditions could request a plastic straw when visiting a pub or restaurant and purchase them from pharmacies.
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