Wet wipes containing plastic are set to be banned from sale in the UK, it has been revealed.
Environment Secretary Steve Barclay announced plans to introduce legislation before the summer recess in July following a long-running campaign to ban the products.
The law would make it illegal to sell or supply wet wipes containing plastic in England, with the rest of the UK set to follow by the autumn.
Wet wipes eventually break down into microplastics, which damage ecosystems and contribute to water pollution, and discarded wipes have increasingly littered Britain’s beaches.
Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said: “Wet wipes containing plastic are polluting our waterways and causing microplastics to enter the environment. Defra will introduce legislation before the summer recess to crack down on this unnecessary source of pollution, following our successful single-use carrier bag charge and ban on microbeads in personal care products.
“I have been clear that a step change is needed to protect our waterways from pollution. The ban builds on a raft of actions already taken to protect our waterways and hold water companies accountable – including accelerating investment, putting water company fines back into the environment and quadrupling the number of inspections of water company sites.
But Labour said the ban did not go far enough, committing to a “a full ban on the sale, supply and manufacture of plastic wet wipes”.
Shadow environment secretary Steve Reed said: “Plastic wet wipes clog up our sewers, kill wildlife and lead to sewage backing up into people’s homes.
“The Conservatives have broken their promises to act and are too weak to ban them outright.”
The party also pointed out that the Conservatives had first promised to ban wet wipes in 2018 as part of a crackdown on plastic waste.
Some businesses such as Boots, Aldi and Tesco have already moved to ban wet wipes containing plastics from their stores.
Steve Ager, Chief Customer and Commercial Officer at Boots, said:
Boots removed all wet wipes containing plastic from sale in stores and online last year as part of our long-standing commitment to sustainability and working with suppliers and customers to reduce the use of plastic.
We are pleased to see the government now taking action as a ban on all wet wipes containing plastic will have a much bigger impact than retailers taking action alone. We all have a collective responsibility to protect the environment and support a healthy planet.
Luke Emery, Plastics and Packaging Director at Aldi, said: “The removal of plastic from Aldi wet wipes two years ago has been positive for our customers and the environment.
“It has removed an estimated 7,000 tonnes of unnecessary plastic from the system and has been welcomed by Aldi shoppers. We support the introduction of this new legislation and the positive impact it will have for everyone.”
An 18-month transition period will start from when legislation is passed to allow businesses time to prepare. Following consultation with industry, the ban will not include the manufacture of these products, in line with other recent single-use plastic bans.
