Andy Burnham is considering banning sachets of ketchup, mayonnaise and vinegar from cafes and restaurants as part of a push to align the UK with European Union rules.

The EU has outlawed single-use plastic packaging for condiments in the catering sector on environmental grounds .

Campaigners calling for the UK to do the same say that 855bn sachets are used every year globally and many are thrown away without even being opened.

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The packets are being prohibited in one part of the UK, under post-Brexit arrangements that require Northern Ireland to follow some EU rules .

In response to a written question in parliament from Tory shadow cabinet office minister Mike Wood, Defra minister Emma Hardy said: “The EU's ban on the sale or provision of single-serving sachets or containers of ketchup, mayonnaise, sugar, salt, oil and vinegar will apply in Northern Ireland under the Windsor framework but will not apply in the rest of the UK under EU-reset.…