Dunne backs Keep Britain Tidy’s Great British Spring Clean

South Shropshire MP Philip Dunne is today encouraging residents and businesses in South Shropshire to pledge to do their bit to clear up the litter that blights the countryside and rural areas as part of the Great British Spring Clean 2023.

This year’s mass campaign, from 17th March to 2nd April, brings together individuals, community organisations, businesses, and councils to make a difference to the environment on our doorstep - and the charity is keen to stress litter-picking can be accessible to everybody with the right resources.

Residents can show pride in their area by pledging on Keep Britain Tidy’s website to pick a bag or more of litter, helping make a huge difference to the environment.
As well as being good for the environment, after the 2022 campaign, 85% of people who took part said they felt more pride for their local area.

A post campaign survey of participants also shows 71% agreed or strongly agreed that they feel more a part of their local community and 69% agreed or strongly agreed that they are more aware of the litter issues in their local area.

Commenting on the campaign Philip Dunne MP, who collects litter regularly, said:

“As well as polluting our streets, parks and beaches, litter harms wildlife, domestic pets, and cattle.

Between 2019 and 2020, the RSPCA dealt with 8,092 calls concerning animals being injured or caught up in general litter – an average of 11 incidents per day.

The Great British Spring Clean, now in its eighth year, will see people up and down the country come together. I hope it will do even better than last year when nearly half a million bags of litter were collected.

This year’s campaign is supported by media partner Clear Channel, as well as traders who are very aware that their packaging can be part of the problem, namely KFC, McDonald’s, Nestlé, Mars Wrigley, Coca-Cola, Walkers, and Pepsi MAX. Players of the People’s Postcode Lottery have also raised funds to support this campaign.