In a nation first, Hobart City Council has voted in favour of a by-law that could see the city become the first Australian city to ban singe-use plastics by 2020.

The ban would apply to any business that provides or sells takeaway food, and includes the use of plastic containers, straws, coffee cups and plastic lids.

Under the changes, businesses within the Hobart municipality will need to start phasing out single-use plastics, moving towards re-usable or compostable packaging.

According to anABC report, Councillor Bill Harvey led the push with the council walls and said the city council had set the bar for other local governments to follow suit.

“What that says is we’re serious about leading by example and we’re a council that takes the initiative, that makes bold decisions and this is one of those decisions that will have impacts for councils across Australia,” he told the ABC.

However, it is estimated the entire statutory process will be unlikely to wrap up for at least six to nine months and the by-law still has a few hurdles to clear.