If the political stage of the European Union was high school, Manfred Weber would not have gotten an "insufficient" for his proposed global plastics ban, most likely a "missed the point".

The EPP’s lead candidate for the top job in the European Commission is attempting to sharpen his political profile these days – including by calling for a global ban on single-use plastics. However, even if the EU was to implement a comprehensive ban on single-use plastics, it would hardly make a dent in global plastics waste, considering other major polluters. Anti-plastic advocates tend to forget that there aren’t really feasible alternatives to single-use plastics yet. What about all the straws? Cups? Plates? As long as we find those at beaches from Bali to Hawaii, the material that they are made of does not really matter, be it metal, glass or, well, plastic.

What Weber should call for if he really cared about the environment is limiting waste at the source, fostering a more circular economy and promoting climate action without targeting solely plastics in a populist attempt to harvest votes on the ecological left of his party.