The European Commission proposed a total ban on many single-use plastic and measures to reduce the consumption of others in the latest move to reduce marine pollution and carbon emissions.

The proposal unveiled on Monday is preparing to ban plastic cotton buds, cutlery and plates, straws, drink stirrers and balloon sticks. It still needs to be approved by the European parliament.

The proposal also includes the reduction of plastic packaging in food like containers and cups by charging for their distribution.

Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen said in a statement: “Single use plastics are not a smart economic or environmental choice, and today’s proposals will help business and consumers to move towards sustainable alternatives.”

“This is an opportunity for Europe to lead the way, creating products that the world will demand for decades to come, and extracting more economic value from our precious and limited resources,” he added.

The EU is also proposing setting up systems to re-use plastic and have stricter regulations and proper labelling of waste management. According to their analysis the proposed measures will save consumers a potential €6.5bn a year as of 2025.

According to the Commission, the new proposals could have major economic and environmental benefits. “Implementation of this proposal will aim to reduce littering by more than half for the ten single use plastic items, avoiding environmental damage which would otherwise cost €223 billion by 2030. It will also avoid the emission of 3.4 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent by 2030,” it claimed.