UK government stalls on peat ban as gardeners and industry shift voluntarily

The UK government has repeatedly pledged to ban peat sales but has not enacted legislation, while some businesses and the Royal Horticultural Society have moved to peat-free operations.

• The government's October 2025 carbon budget and growth delivery plan stated it will legislate a ban on peat "when parliamentary time allows".
• The Royal Horticultural Society has since January sold only "no new peat" plants at its garden centres and banned new peat at its 2026 flower shows including Chelsea.
• Bowdens nursery's Tim Penrose was refused entry to the 2026 Chelsea Flower Show over the peat policy; he protested and the RHS confirmed the matter is subject to legal action.
• The Peat-Free Partnership handed a petition to No 10 in February 2026 calling for legislation, signed by nearly 18,000 people.