The 5p charge on plastic bags is being ramped up to 10p and will be extended to all retailers in England from April next year, under plans aimed at curbing waste plastic pollution that will be announced by the government today. Defra said the “hugely successful” 5p charge has prevented billions of plastic bags being sold and ending up in the ocean and environment since it was first introduced in 2015, with major supermarkets reporting a 95 per cent drop in plastic bag sales.
“The UK is already a world-leader in this global effort, and our carrier bag charge has been hugely successful in taking billions of harmful plastic bags out of circulation,” he said. “But we want to go further by extending this to all retailers so we can continue to cut unnecessary waste and build back greener. I hope our pioneering track record on single-use plastics will inspire many more countries to follow suit, so we can take on plastic waste together and implement lasting change.” Since the 5p bag charge was introduced five years ago – spearheaded by the Lib Dems in the coalition government – the average person in England now buys just four bags a year from the main supermarkets, compared with 140 in 2014, government statistics show.
The move comes hot-on-the-heels of the government’s consulation on its planned plastic tax, which will impose a new tax on producers and retailers who use plastic packaging. The proposals have sparked a major debate across the industry over whether bioplastics and compostable plastics should be covered by the new tax or not. Tom Fyans, deputy chief executive at countryside charity CPRE, said it was “heartening to see” the government extend the plastic carrier bag charge, but warned far more needed to be done to tackle the UK’s “throwaway culture”.
Source: Business Green
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