This petition was submitted during the 2019-2024 parliament

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Petition Ban the sale of plastic wet wipes; affordable alternatives are widely available

Government should ban the sale of baby and personal care wipes containing plastic in the UK by year end 2022. Following DEFRA’s ban on single-use plastic straws, cotton buds and stirrers, wet wipes containing plastic should also be phased out and replaced with plastic-free, sustainable alternatives.

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90% of the 11bn wipes sold in the UK contain plastic. They take 100+ years to degrade, leaving microplastics. Single-use plastic wipes are also behind 93% of sewer-clogging fatbergs, costing the taxpayer millions of pounds a year, and are the third most common marine litter item in the UK. Microplastic filters into our food chain and has even been found in human placentas, potentially causing foetal damage. Government intervention is needed to drive forward change that is happening too slowly.

This petition is closed This petition ran for 6 months

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MPs call for ban on all plastic waste exports

MPs on the House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee have called for a ban on the export of all plastic waste from the UK by 2027 to reduce the country's contribution to global plastic waste pollution. 

Read a summary of the Committee's report on plastic waste

Report on ending the impact of plastic waste

Earlier this month, the Committee published a report on the impact of plastic waste and ways of reducing it. In their report, MPs called on the Government to restrict the amount of plastic that can be exported from the UK. They also called on the Government to step up the enforcement of existing rules to prevent criminal gangs illegally exporting and dumping UK-produced waste. 

The report follows a series of evidence sessions earlier this year, where the Committee questions representatives from charities, environmental campaigners and commercial trade experts. At these sessions the Committee explored:

  • whether the Government’s current ambitions to reduce plastic waste were enough
  • how alternatives to plastic consumption can be identified and supported
  • how England's current plastic exports impact other countries.

Find out more about the Committee's inquiry into plastic waste and read oral evidence from the Committee's inquiry.

What is the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee? 

The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee is a cross-party group of backbench MPs that scrutinises the administration, spending and policy of the Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. 

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