Draft Regulations laid on 16 September banning the supply and sale of wet wipes containing plastic which will be signed into law today will come into force 18 months after the day on which they are made.

The Environmental Protection (Wet Wipes Containing Plastic) (England) Regulations 2025 provide for an 18-month transition period before the ban comes into force in spring 2027. The Regulations extend to England and Wales and apply in relation to England only.

The Welsh Assembly has already introduced its own legislation which will see a ban starting on 18 December 2026 to give time for manufacturers to adapt their production processes if they want to continue to supply the market in Wales.

Speaking in the House of Lords on 10 November, Baroness Hayman, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the government’s aim was to deliver a ban that was sensible and effective, while minimising the negative impacts it might have on businesses and individuals reliant on such products.

Government policy on exemptions would ensure that individuals and businesses, including for medical and industrial uses, who have a genuine need for wet wipes containing plastic could access them until there is a viable alternative. The scope of the exemptions will be periodically reviewed.

The transition period is intended to mitigate the economic impacts of the ban, including potential job losses, and the risk of excess stocks of wet wipes containing plastic being sent to landfill or incinerated.

However, Baroness Hayman explained that if the government banned the manufacture and export of wet wipes containing plastic, businesses in other countries would likely continue to import wet wipes containing plastic from countries with poorer environmental standards. She told the House that this would mean meaning that UK wet wipe manufacturers would become less competitive in international markets for “little or no environmental benefit.”

UK wet wipe manufacturers will therefore be allowed to continue to manufacture and export the products, ensuring that the businesses remain viable and continue to develop sustainable alternatives to wet wipes containing plastic.

“However, we will consider banning manufacture once the ban on supply and sale has come into force,” Baroness Hayman said.

Trading standards or equivalent enforcement officers within local authorities will enforce the ban using a reactive, intelligence-led model. The Government is due to publish guidance to make clear the scope and details of the regulations to assist businesses and regulators in understanding the changes brought in by the legislation and help ensure compliance.

The Environmental Protection (Single-use plastic products) (Wet Wipes) (Wales) Regulations 2025 make it a criminal offence to supply or offer to supply (including for free) wet wipes containing plastic to consumers in Wales. An exemption has been included for the continued supply of plastic containing wet wipes which are ‘designed or manufactured for use in connection with medical care or treatment’.