May Declares War on ‘Scourge’ of Plastic With 25-Year U.K. Plan
- Government to extend carrier-bag tax, examine other charges
- U.K. seeks to eliminate ‘avoidable’ plastic waste by 2042
An employee hands a customer a plastic shopping bag at a Poundland store in London.
Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg
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Prime Minister Theresa May declared war on plastics, outlining a plan to eliminate “avoidable” waste by 2042, including proposals for new taxes and funding for sustainable alternatives.
The amount of single-use plastic waste generated by Britons every year is enough to fill the Albert Hall, a London concert venue, a thousand times over, May said in a speech on Thursday at the London Wetlands Centre. Her plan includes proposals to extend a tax on plastic bags to small retailers and to encourage plastic-free aisles in supermarkets.