I'm pleased to move today's UKIP debate. As our motion states, there are around 2,000 incidents of sewer blockages in Wales each month, or around 24,000 a year. Recently, there has been coverage in the media of fatbergs, where fat, oil and grease combine with rags and other material in the sewer to clog up the network. There have been tv programmes describing fatbergs the size of a London bus. Indeed, Members will have noticed the extensive work going on in Mermaid Quay, just along the bay, where Welsh Water are having to replace the sewer because of precisely this problem. 

Most incidences of sewer blocking, however, are caused by wet wipes. Items such as baby wipes and cosmetic removal wipes account for at least two thirds of sewer blockages, according to Welsh Water. In fact, the Water UK sewer blockage study, carried out last year, puts that figure even higher, at around 90 to 95 per cent.

Sewer blockages and the resulting flooding are not pleasant. In fact, when sewage enters a property, such as a home or a business, the results are at best extremely distressing and at worst completely devastating.

A large majority of these incidents are, however, completely avoidable. The simple truth is that most of these wipes contain plastic material, such as polypropylene or polyethylene fibres. They do not break down when flushed down the loo, and it is these wipes that, as we have heard, cause up to 95 per cent of sewer blockages. If we were able to eliminate sewer blockages caused by these wet wipes, that would be almost 23,000 fewer incidents every single year.

Of course, part of the problem is that many people don't know that these products simply shouldn't be flushed away. We applaud the work undertaken by water companies so far to increase awareness, but this is a problem that isn't going to go away until we start taking greater action.

The Welsh Government are already undertaking some work on extended producer responsibility. In May, the Minister said that the work to date included six types of food and drink packaging, including drinks bottles and cans and single-use coffee cups. Point 3 of our motion asks the Government to extend that work to include products like wet wipes and cotton buds. We think that companies that produce these items should have greater regard for the entire lifecycle of their products, including end-of-life disposal.

Similarly, EDANA, or the European Disposables and Nonwovens Association, have developed a flushability test and a code of practice for manufacturers. This says that wipes that cannot be flushed should have a clear logo on the packaging, warning consumers that the product should not be disposed of down the loo. Of course, it's not binding, so point 4 of our motion calls on the UK Government to take this one step further and legislate to make this a requirement.

There's been much discussion in the Chamber about recycling, plastic taxes, disposable coffee cups and the like. Wales led the way on the plastic carrier bag charge. It may not have been universally popular immediately, but people soon got used to it, and reusing plastic bags is now second nature to most people. There needs to be a significant culture change from manufacturers and consumers to reverse the growing throwaway culture in our society that is causing this issue of sewer blockage, which we're talking about today, and also causing many other environmental problems. So, we ask Members to support our motion today. Diolch.