Britain might soon impose a ban on all wet wipes containing plastic if a new proposed bill tabled in parliament pushes through.
The Bill by Putney MP Fleur Anderson is seeking to prohibit the manufacture and sale of the said wet wipes as a way of protecting the planet.
The Bill will have its first reading on Tuesday next week.
“As a mother of four children, I completely understand the pressures that parents are under and the difficulties that can bring when trying to cut down on plastic and make the right choices for the environment, I know that parents want to do the right things and all I am saying is that we can make it easier on them and on everyone who relies on the use of wet wipes every day” the MP said.
Ms Anderson said that everyone should “bin and not flush wet wipes”, but either way the plastic they contain still gets in the environment and kills wildlife.
“My Bill comes in the same week as world leaders are meeting for COP26 and will show that the UK can take serious action and ban plastic from wet wipes made and sold in the UK,” she added.
Around 90% of the 11 billion wet wipes used in the UK every year contain some form of plastic that turns into microplastics when broken down, Ms Anderson claims, which can ultimately be ingested by wildlife and enter the food chain and water supply.
The MP also highlighted that wet wipes are the cause of 93% of blockages in UK sewers.
“Just one sewage station in East London removes 30 tonnes of wet wipes every day,” she said.
“In 2019, 23,000 wet wipes were counted and removed from a single stretch of the Thames foreshore in just two hours. That is even more terrifying when you consider that our reliance on wet wipes is growing day by day,” Anderson said.
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