The News teams up with Final Straw as plastic battle goes on

The News has partnered with The Final Straw Solent in the ongoing fight to get rid of plastic waste in the region.

While our campaign has focused on the businesses and people taking a stand, The Final Straw Solent campaign has seen more than 100 businesses commit to eradicating single-use plastics, while also organising beach cleans to tidy up the local area.

Campaigner Bianca Carr said: ‘We started out the campaign in February and wanted to get some local businesses involved, to try and turn it into a more pleasant place.

‘It was crazy to see how many businesses got involved. To have more than 100 on board in just a couple of months really goes to show how many people believe that this is an important issue that needs to be tackled.

‘It is so important to do this and with the government also starting to get involved, it is great to be at the forefront of tackling plastic waste in the region.’

Fellow campaigner Giles Babb said: ‘It is great to be partnering with The News because we can get the message out there to more people.

‘Things have been so positive so far and to have everyone push this message is so important.’

This new partnership has already claimed a plastics victory, as the upcoming Cocktail Festival in Portsmouth vowed to go plastics-free for the event.

The event, which is taking place on April 7 at Portsmouth Guildhall, will see cocktails of all varieties – but not a single piece of plastic in sight.

Organiser Lucy Penketh said: ‘When we heard about the campaigns we wanted to show that we care about where we live.

‘All of our straws will be paper ones; we have reusable acrylic glasses instead of plastic cups and will have wooden stirrers as well.

‘It is the little changes that have a big impact – and that is what we are trying to show with the festival.

‘Everyone knows how harmful single-use plastics are to the environment, but the key is to not be afraid to take a stand and change your lifestyle to fight against them.

‘As soon as people realise how easy it is to fight the plastics, our environment and ecosystems will become much healthier too.’

For more information about the Cocktail Festival, people can go to thecocktailfestival.co.uk.