Defra announce draft regulations to enforce wet wipe ban in England

Defra has set out The Environmental Protection (Wet Wipes Containing Plastic) (England) Regulations 2025, which aims to prevent wet wipes containing plastic from causing pollution of the environment and harm to the health of animals.

This will prohibit plastic fibres, including polyester and polypropylene, from the 30.5 billion wet wipes sold yearly in the UK. Instead, manufacturers will be required to use natural alternatives, such as biodegradable viscose, cotton or bamboo.

The draft regulations will prohibit businesses in England from supplying or offering to supply wet wipes containing plastics to consumers. However, the ban does not apply to manufacturing these products, or supplying them to local authorities, UK businesses, and overseas markets.

In October 2023, Defra held a public consultation on proposals to ban plastic wet wipes across the UK and received 95 per cent of respondents in favour. The plan to then enforce the ban was then announced in April 2024.

Some major retailers, including Boots, Tesco and Aldi have already moved ahead of the legislation in choosing to remove wet wipes that contain plastic from their stores.

The draft regulations are awaiting parliamentary approval and the regulations are set to take effect 18 months after this date. 

This specific regulation applies only to England, with Scotland and Northern Ireland also publishing separate draft regulations to be considered by lawmakers. Wales has already passed its own legislation. The regulations were laid on 6th May 2025, and the Senedd passed the law in June 2025, making Wales the UK nation to implement the ban. It is set to come into force on 18th December 2026.

Enforcement and penalties

The regulations set the fixed monetary penalty at £200 for violations, with an option to discharge liability by paying £100 within 28 days. Local authorities will serve as regulators with powers to enter premises, take samples, and investigate potential violations.

Compliance notices will be issued to those found to be infringing regulations, requiring them to take steps to ensure the offence does not recur. Stop notices are to be used as an immediate enforcement tool when the regulator believes that the activity is causing or presents significant risk of harm to the environment. This can halt business operations until the required steps have been taken.

Enforcement undertakings will allow businesses to voluntarily commit to specific remedial actions when the regulator has reasonable grounds to suspect an offence has been committed. Instead of facing formal sanctions, this will allow businesses to resolve matters cooperatively and demonstrate their efforts to comply and remedy harm.

Registered pharmacies can still supply wet wipes containing plastic, but advertisement to customers will be prohibited. The draft rules state they must be kept out of customer view and general access, and that they can only be provided when specifically requested.

Healthcare professionals and suppliers can also provide wet wipes containing plastic for medical purposes including preventative medicine, medical diagnosis, medical research and provision of medical care and treatment.

The damage of wet wipes

Impacts to the sewerage system is one of the most costly impacts of wet wipe usage. A survey in 2023 revealed that 22 per cent of people in the UK admit to flushing wet wipes down the toilet.

An investigation by Water UK found wet wipes made up approximately 93 per cent of all material found in a sample of 54 sewerage blockages. Clearing the 300,000 sewerage blockages costs £100 million each year.

As wet wipes break down, they disintegrate and become microplastics. A study by Cardiff University's Water Research Institute found that an average of 323 plastic fibers from wet wipes are released into UK water systems per person annually.

Defra is inviting feedback on the draft regulations until 31st July 2025 [email protected].