McDonald's, Wrigley and others call on government to fight £1bn litter problem

Coalition of campaign groups and businesses back cleanup plan in a letter to the Guardian, urging the government to 'provide or stimulate funding'

Litter is a problem that costs taxpayers nearly 1bn a year, and now some of the companies whose products end up as waste on the streets are calling on the government to create a national strategy to tackle it.

A coalition of campaign groups and businesses including McDonald's and chewing gum maker Wrigley, as well as soft drinks companies and national pub chains, have backed the cleanup plan, called the Litter Manifesto, in a letter to the Guardian. In it they urge the government to come up with a plan "that has teeth" by "providing or stimulating funding".