On March 2 2022, delegates to the UN environment assembly adopted an ambitious resolution to develop the text of a new treaty by the end of 2024 to end plastic pollution. With 24 days of formal negotiation between almost 200 countries completed, spread over meetings in Peru, France, Kenya and Canada, the fifth and final negotiation meeting is about to take place in Busan, South Korea. This is crunch time. Agreement must be found or the opportunity to take global action to tackle plastic pollution might be lost.

With a legally binding global treaty to address plastic pollution on the horizon, what are the potential risks and opportunities for the UK? PoliticsHome sat down with Professor Steve Fletcher, Director of the Revolution Plastics Institute at the University of Portsmouth and UKRI Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) UK Plastic Pollution Agenda Setting Fellow, to learn how world-class research can position the UK as a global leader in the future of plastics.

A new study has revealed worrying levels of fibreglass in oysters and mussels

Professor Steve Fletcher, Director of the Revolution Plastics Institute reflects on the Plastic Treaty negotiations.

In an effort to combat plastic waste, members of the Global Plastics Policy Centre at the University of Portsmouth today urged delegates at a World Trade Organisation (WTO) event to focus on trade measures that encourage the adoption of reuse systems.

The University's Revolution Plastics Institute has been named the scientific lead for the ground-breaking Clean Planet Peninsula Project

This one-off special episode looks at INC-4 with University of Portsmouth experts who attended the fourth round of the Global Plastics Treaty

New study aims to understand the effects of plastic waste on endangered monkeys

Negotiators trying to bring an end to plastic pollution around the world have been told to prioritise reuse systems, by experts from the University of Portsmouth

UK households are throwing away on average 60 pieces of plastic packaging per household weekly, an estimated 1.7 billion pieces of plastic nationally weekly, equating to 90 billion pieces of plastic packaging being thrown away annually

A new report from the University's Global Plastics Policy Centre and Common Seas unpacks the essential elements of successful National Plans to tackle plastic pollution

Inger Anderson, Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, has come face to face with a ‘monster’ made of plastic collected by waste pickers from the informal settlement Mukuru in Nairobi.

The Big Plastic Count represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the public to influence the UN Global Plastics Treaty.

Former Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron has urged Labour to “borrow” Lib Dem ideas on reforming water utility companies if Keir Starmer's party gets into government, including turning some businesses into not-for-profit, community run schemes.

There’s an evolution of a revolution at the University of Portsmouth, with a new development that is poised to reshape how global plastic research takes place

Steve Fletcher, Professor of Ocean Policy and Economy and Director of Revolution Plastics at the University of Portsmouth, has been appointed by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), working closely with Innovate UK, to develop a transformative

In one of the first studies of its kind, scientists are investigating the effects of plastic pollution on donkeys in Kenya

Waste pickers from Kenya delivered a powerful and unique message to policymakers at the beginning of the third round of plastics treaty negotiations in Nairobi this week.

Waste pickers from Kenya will deliver an important message to policy makers at the next round of negotiations for a global plastics treaty in Nairobi this week.

Battling against sewage spills, Britain’s heritage oyster industry is struggling to survive. Lucy Kehoe reports.

The University of Portsmouth is helping to produce policies and solutions that tackle plastic pollution around the world.

With the Global Plastics Treaty starting to take shape, PoliticsHome reports back from Day 3 of the University of Portsmouth’s PlasticsFuture conference, which included a series of panel discussions, keynote speeches and short talks on how we can get the best out of the international response to deal with the plastic pollution crisis.

In the past, Parliament has passed ground-breaking acts that transformed air quality in this country; from public health legislation passed in the 19th century which regulated smoke from coal in industrial towns and cities, to the 1956 “Great Smog” Clean Air Act and, in recent memory, the 2021 Environment Act, with its binding targets on air quality.

Yesterday Zero Hour launched their latest report, Net Zero: The Ambition Gap. This landmark guide sets out in clear, concise terms why the United Kingdom must up its ambition if we’re serious about limiting global heating to 1.5C and pulling back from dangerous tipping points.