A new campaign launched by the Environment Secretary, Michael Gove uses emotive images to deter people from littering
The government campaign works in partnership with environmental charity, Keep Britain Tidy and has already been backed by some of the biggest names in retail, travel and entertainment.
Big names include Mars Wrigley Confectionery, Greggs, McDonald’s, Pepsico UK and National Rail.
Allison Ogden-Newton, CEO of Keep Britain Tidy, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Defra to deliver the first government backed national anti-litter campaign in a generation.
“As the largest consumers of food and drink on the go in Europe the need for this campaign has never been greater. We are urgently asking everyone to eliminate litter by keeping their packaging with them when there isn’t a bin and bin it when there is one.
“We know the impact that litter has on our environment, on wildlife and, ultimately, our oceans where 80% of the plastics found there come directly from the land.
“This campaign will raise awareness with those people who still think it is acceptable to leave their rubbish anywhere other than in a bin.
The message is simple – Keep it. Bin it.”
Poignant images of wildlife eating and getting tangled in litter, contrasted against typical excuses for people give for dropping litter have been used to make people think twice before littering.
The emotive imagery demonstrates the impact that littering can have on the environment, with the RSPCA responding to 1,500 calls about litter-related incidents affecting animals every year.
Environment Secretary Michael Gove said: “The ‘Keep it, Bin it’ campaign is a bold statement of our intent to tackle the scourge of littering. Littering is antisocial and unacceptable. It plagues our environment and poisons our wildlife.
“We know we won’t achieve this ambition by working alone. That’s why I’m thrilled to see some of our biggest companies including Mars Wrigley Confectionery, Greggs, and McDonalds and the tireless campaigners at Keep Britain Tidy, joining forces with us to help improve our precious environment.”
The campaign will be on display in train stations nationwide, including commuter hubs such as London Euston, Manchester Piccadilly and Birmingham New Street, as well as across partners’ social media channels and on Clear Channel’s Socialite screens.
After the launch, the campaign will feature at till-points in Gregg’s stores and at Cineworld cinemas through the partnership with PepsiCo UK.
Keeping the country’s streets clean cost local government almost £700 million last year in England, much of this spent cleaning up avoidable litter.
Millions of pieces of litter are dropped every day in England.
The new campaign is urging people to put their litter in a bin, or keep hold of it and put it in a bin when they see one. Empty packets and other litter should always be recycled wherever possible.
