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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of banning all non-essential single-use plastic in the UK.

Plastic is an extremely useful material and when used in the right way and disposed of correctly, it can help us deliver the best environmental outcome. For example, we have seen how useful it can be for medical and clinical purposes as it is strong, flexible and light-weight. However, where the evidence supports the case, we will not hesitate to introduce bans and other measures to limit its use, as we have done with single-use plastic straws, stirrers, and cotton buds. Such an approach will continue to be applied to our upcoming policy measures, like our proposed ban of single-use plastic plates, cutlery and polystyrene food and drinks containers, to ensure we have the best overall impact on our natural environment.