Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the single-use plastic products that are set to be banned from April 2020 will still be available to disabled people who require them.

The exemptions will ensure that plastic straws will continue to be available for medical uses and through registered pharmacies (in store and online), and through catering establishments for use by people with disabilities who rely on them to eat and drink safely and independently.

For plastic straws, the Government will review the policy after the ban has been in place for a year, to assess its effectiveness in cutting the number of straws, its impact on those with disabilities, and whether the policy needs to be revised.