eBay UK Bans Single-Use Plastics From June 1st Thanks To New Scottish Law
A new Scottish law has passed which means that from June 1st, 2022 single-use plastic items will be banned. Interestingly eBay UK has chosen to carry this ban over to the entire UK marketplace and not just Scotland.
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As it stands the new law only applies to Scotland and not the rest of the UK however eBay UK in an announcement has stated that it will be an offense to supply the most problematic single-use plastic items on the UK marketplace from June 1st.
“We are turning promise into action and banning some of the most problematic single-use plastic items in Scotland. Every year, hundreds of millions of pieces of single-use plastic are wasted in this country. They litter our coasts, pollute our oceans and contribute to the climate emergency. That has to end and this ban will be another step forward in the fight against plastic waste and throwaway culture. This is another example of the sort of bold action that is needed if we are to deliver on the commitments that are being made at COP26.”
“Crucially, the legislation includes exemptions for single-use plastic straws, to make sure that those who need them for independent living or medical purposes can still get access to them. However, the ban is at risk from the UK Internal Market Act, which effectively exempts any items that are produced in or imported via another part of the UK. I will be writing to the UK government to ask that they take the necessary steps to ensure the integrity of this ban.”
Lorna Slater, Circular Economy Minister, Scotland
eBay UK does seem to be taking the enviornment and sustainability more seriously as just this week it was announced they were going to be the fashion partner for hit TV show Love Island, ensuring all contestants would be wearing pre-loved clothes.
The eBay UK Single Use Plastics Announcement
“As you may be aware, Scotland has passed new laws banning environmentally damaging single-use plastic items.
This ban comes into effect on 1 June 2022. After this time it will be an offence to supply the following products on eBay:
- Plastic cutlery (forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks) plates, straws, beverage stirrers and balloon sticks
- Food containers made of expanded polystyrene
- Cups and other beverage containers made of expanded polystyrene, including their covers and lids
All sellers need to comply with this new legislation by reviewing their inventory and by removing non-compliant listings on eBay by 1 June 2022.
For more information, please see the Scottish Government guidance.
As always, thank you for selling on eBay
Your eBay UK seller team”
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Dave Furness
Dave is a Co-Founder of eSeller365. For over 10 years he has been involved with eCommerce with a particular interest in the marketplaces and the huge opportunities available for sellers when utilizing a multi-channel strategy. After a year of being the UK’s youngest eCommerce consultant, he built an education platform called UnderstandingE that showed the world how to utilize Magento as the “Third Generation of Multi-Channel software”.
Dave has also created a YouTube channel dedicated to entrepreneurship and eCommerce as well as a podcast dedicated to mental health awareness. When Dave isn’t working his main interests include learning and playing Chess, researching the Crypto and NFT space, and trying to find the nearest beach.