The government has confirmed single-use items like plastic cutlery, plates and polystyrene trays will soon be banned in England.

Figures suggest that every year England uses about 1.1bn single-use plates and 4.25bn pieces of such cutlery, only 10% of which are recycled after being used.

Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey described the move as a bid to help protect the environment for future generations.

“I am determined to drive forward action to tackle this issue head on. We’ve already taken major steps in recent years – but we know there is more to do, and we have again listened to the public’s calls,” she said.

“This new ban will have a huge impact to stop the pollution of billions of pieces of plastics and help to protect the natural environment for future generations.”

Similar bans have already been made in Scotland and Wales, while the UK government banned single-use plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds in England in 2020.

Confirmation of the move from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) follows a long consultation, which will be published on Saturday 14 January.