Prime minister Gordon Brown has given his official seal of approval to the Exeter Express and Echo’s Green Shoppers campaign to reduce the use of plastic bags and to cut excess packaging.
On meeting Echo editor Marc Astley at 10 Downing Street, Brown signed the paper’s campaign pledge and signed one of the paper’s reusable alternatives to plastic bags.
It is estimated that up to 10,000 of the eco-friendly bags will be used in the next month.
The campaign, which has been launched in partnership with the city council, EDF Energy and Tidy Exeter Group, aims to have saved at least eight million plastic bags by next summer.
Brown said: ‘The whole city of Exeter should be proud of the work being done by local businesses and local people, and I want to congratulate the Express and Echo for leading the way.”
The Echo’s editor, Marc Astley, added: ‘I very much welcome the Prime Minister’s support. It not only demonstrates the universal appeal of the campaign but also the power of the regional press.
‘The Echo, its partners and, most importantly, its readers, have sent out a powerful message that is being taken seriously at the very highest level.”
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