The Church of England's lead bishop on the environment has claimed that planned government initiatives on the environment unveiled in recent days mean this could prove to be a 'great week' for environmental policy in the UK.
The bishop of Salisbury, Nicholas Holtam, welcomed prime minister Theresa May's reported plans to ban a number of single-use plastic products.
Cotton buds and plastic drinking straws could be among single-use plastics banned from sale in England next year as part of the campaign to try to halt the pollution of the world's rivers and oceans.
This week, Claire Perry, the minister for clean growth, also outlined hopes for the UK to be the first major developed economy to reach targets aimed at helping to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5C as set out in the Paris Agreement.
Bishop Holtam said: 'I welcome these commendable ambitions by the government, which if followed through with concrete actions make this potentially a great week for environmental policy in the UK. Climate change is one of the great moral challenges of our times, while our addiction to cheap plastic is simply indefensible when more sustainable alternatives are available.
'These steps send a strong message internationally, especially to our Commonwealth cousins as Britain is hosting leaders in London this week.
'As I meet fellow Anglican bishops, especially from Africa and the Pacific, it is clear that their countries are suffering now because of climate and reducing our emissions is the biggest single step we can take to ensuring a more fairly run world.'
He said: 'Waste plastic is toxic to ecosystems, especially in the oceans. It is a no-brainer to replace plastics with biodegradable alternatives in the many cases where they are easily available.
'We must hope and pray that British leadership on this issue therefore galvanises other countries in the Commonwealth and elsewhere to follow suit.'
However, Labour's shadow environment secretary Sue Hayman said: 'Leadership and action on the environment begins at home. The government has failed to bring forward a single piece of primary legislation on any of their announcements on the environment, farming or animal welfare since the last election.
'With the UK leaving the EU in less than 12 months, there is a worrying lack of preparation to reassure the public that environmental standards won't suffer.'
