Price of a bag up to 10p in war on plastic
THE price of a carrier bag will double to 10p as part of a plan by Theresa May to escalate the war on plastic.
The Prime Minister will announce the proposal next week in a move that will see every retailer in Britain charge for single-use disposable carriers.
Ministers are in favour of increasing the levy to encourage more shoppers to use reusable bags.
The proposals will be included in a Government paper due to go out for consultation later this year, according to a retail industry insider.
The existing charge has been hailed by environmentalists for achieving an 85 per cent reduction in plastic bags since October 2015, when it was first introduced in England. Last year the charge raised £58million for charities and good causes in England.
Currently only retailers with more than 250 employees have to charge a minimum of 5p for bags. But under the plans all retailers would be included, in a move that could be fought by convenience stores desperate to gain a competitive advantage over supermarkets.
Political sentiment has turned against single-use plastic since the effect of litter on ocean wildlife was highlighted in the BBC’S Blue Planet II.
It comes eight months after the Prime Minister unveiled the Government’s ambitious 25-year environmental plan, which promised to eradicate avoidable plastic waste by 2042.
Mrs May described single-use plastics as one of the “great environmental scourges of our time” as she announced a series of policies including plasticfree aisles in supermarkets and a tax on takeaway containers. Under the pledge, waste such as the carrier bags, food packaging and disposable plastic straws that litter the country and pollute the seas would be abolished.
Since his appointment as Environment Secretary last year, Michael Gove has led efforts to speed up the crackdown, announcing in April a ban on the sale of straws, drink stirrers and cotton buds made from plastic.
The Government is said to have decided that smaller retailers must now charge for bags, with concerns that not enough of them signed up voluntarily.
Last night a spokesman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs declined to comment.
According to government figures, the amount of single-use plastics thrown away each year in Britain would be enough to fill the Royal Albert Hall 1,000 times over.
Mr Gove, who has been pushing to make Britain a “world leader” on environmental protections, has also recently launched a consultation on the introduction of a deposit scheme for plastic bottles and cans, which he hopes will become law by 2020.
MPS have also urged ministers to consider a 25p tax on disposable coffee cups, nicknamed a “latte levy”, which could be used to fund improvements to recycling and reprocessing facilities.