Banning plastic straws is ab fab by me, says Joanna Lumley

Daniel Hambury

Joanna Lumley today backed the Standard’s The Last Straw campaign after one of her favourite West End restaurants, Joe Allen, signed up to our calls to ban plastic.

The 71-year-old actress, best known for her role as Patsy Stone in the comedy Absolutely Fabulous, has praised our “important” campaign and called on all Londoners to back it and help “save our precious planet”.

Lumley, who lives in London with conductor husband Stephen Barlow, told the Standard: “Joe Allen, always one of my favourite restaurants, is now even more fabulous because it has joined The Last Straw in banning single-use plastics on its premises. This issue could not be more important: it is vital that we, you and I, make every effort to save our precious planet.

“This initiative needs us all to support it, in gorgeous venues like Joe Allen, and also in our daily lives. It will make a huge difference. You go, Joe!” The restaurant, where Graham Norton was once a waiter, opened in 1977 and almost immediately became a popular post-show spot for performers such as Dame Judi Dench, Dame Harriet Walter and Sir Rod Stewart, as well as new generation stars including Katherine Parkinson and Emily Berrington.

Cathy Winn, general manager of the restaurant, said she was inspired to take action by Sir David Attenborough’s Blue Planet series.

“Following the fabulous Blue Planet series we have been inspired to up our game and join the Evening Standard’s campaign,” she said. “Going forward, we will have straws on request that are compostable and made from corn starch.”

On the number of plastic straws they currently use annually, Ms Winn added: “We have about 100,000 customers a year, so with straws in soft drinks and cocktails? You guess!”

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Caesars Entertainment UK, the owner of London’s Empire Casino and a number of other gambling venues across the country, has now removed plastic straws completely and replaced them with paper, non-coated, bleach-free straws that take three months to biodegrade.

Last year the business used 1.5 million straws in the UK, including 900,000 in London. Managing director Mike Rothwell said: “Last year, we conducted our own ‘straw poll’ which resulted in a policy to only provide straws upon customer request. In response to The Last Straw campaign we’ve now gone one step further… casinos will begin ordering the new straws and phasing out plastic ones immediately.

“We salute the Evening Standard for highlighting such an important message and are proud to support the cause.” The W hotel in Leicester Square, where about 147,000 straws were used last year, has also now banned plastic ones.

From Monday they will be committing to being 100 per cent plastic-free, offering paper straws and bamboo cocktail sticks as alternatives.

Meanwhile, London super-club Ministry of Sound has also confirmed it has been working towards eradicating plastic straws since last October.

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