Scots urged to embrace Christmas straw ban

Partygoers are being urged to go without straws in drinks this festive season in a drive to cut plastic waste.

SNP MSP Kate Forbes called on bars, cafes and restaurants to also stop routinely offering plastic straws to help protect the environment.

The issue of plastic pollution has gathered momentum with the screening of David Attenborough’s Blue Planet II, which includes moving scenes of the damage caused to the world’s oceans and their inhabitants.

It is estimated about eight million tonnes of plastic reaches the sea every year and by 2050 there will be more plastic in our oceans than fish.

Earlierthisweekullapool was hailed for its action to tackle the problem with all 14 bars, restaurants and cafes in the village either removing straws altogether or switching to nonplastic alternatives.

Ms Forbes, the member for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, said that for many giving up straws would be an easy first step in reducing the amount of waste created by single-use disposable plastic items.

She said: “For most of us, straws in our drinks are something we use out of habit, not out of necessity.

“And plastic straws don’t do our environment any good. They’re just one among many disposable plastic items we encounter day to day, used once, ditched and sent to landfill. They don’t biodegrade and can take centuries to break down.”