Department for Transport plans to cut down on plastic on UK flights

Aviation minister Baroness Sugg has announced plans to make the sector ‘greener’ by cutting down on plastic used on flights.



The changes, to be introduced as part of the government’s Aviation Strategy, would see reductions in the use of plastic to wrap items like headphones and pillows.

Other plans include the installation of water fountains at airports to reduce purchases of water in plastic bottles.

‘This demonstrates our commitment to creating a transport system which works for passengers as we build a Britain fit for the future,’ Baroness Sugg said.

The plans are unlikely to be introduced until 2019 at the earliest.

The move follows plans to extend the 5p plastic bag charge to small businesses and the introduction of a deposit return scheme for plastic bottles.

However, the government’s pledge to eliminate avoidable plastic waste by 2042 has been criticised by environmental groups for not being sufficiently ambitious.

Campaign group Greenpeace claimed that the plans only included an extra £1 million per year in extra funding, a figure it branded ‘a pittance’.