Now SNP pledges plastic ban in fight against litter

SINGLE-USE plastics are set to be banned by 2030 under radical plans to tackle pollution and litter.

The move will see restrictions on the sale and manufacturing on non-recyclable materials. Environment Secretary Roseanna Cunningham said she intends to implement bans that will consider throw-away plastics on an ‘item-by-item basis’.

She told a Sunday newspaper civil servants are to begin investigating how to reduce the use of items such as straws, bottles, cups, lids and cutlery.

The Scottish Daily Mail last year successfully campaigned for the introduction of a bottle deposit return scheme to cut the blight of plastic bottles littering the country.

Miss Cunningham’s announcement of a ban on single-use plastics follows a European Commission announcement last week that all plastic packaging across Europe will be recyclable or reusable by the end of the next decade – a commitment which would not apply to the UK after Brexit.

She said Scotland should ‘support’ this initiative and that the country will ‘continue to match the best ambition there is’.

Miss Cunningham’s announcement follows the Scottish Government committing to a ban on plastic cotton buds.

An expert panel set up to look at single-use plastic will examine the possible introduction of taxes and levies on some items.

The first Europe-wide strategy on plastics includes proposals to reduce the consumption of singleuse plastics and restrict the use of microplastics, such as the tiny beads found in cosmetics.

This month, Prime Minister Theresa May pledged to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste within 25 years as part of the Government’s environmental strategy.

Dr Richard Dixon, director of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: ‘This is excellent news, the Scottish Government is making great strides with this strong signal of intent to stop plastic waste at source.

‘The plastic bag charge has worked very well, the ban on plastic cotton buds is a bold move and the forthcoming deposit scheme will make a big difference to recycling rates for bottles and cans.

‘The commitment to be part of the European phase out of single use plastics by 2030 is the strongest statement that we are serious about getting rid of plastic.’