Plastic Bag Charge to Double in England

From 21 May, the charge of a single use plastic carrier bag will double in price from 5p to 10p in all shops in England.

The government say the new charge will apply to all stores, including corner shops.

The introduction of a charge has been a huge success. The use of plastic bags has fallen by over 95% since the 5p levy was introduced in England in 2015.

On average, people in England now buy only four single use carrier bags a year from the main supermarkets. This compares to the number of 140 in 2014.

The government hope that extending the charge to all retailers, will decrease the use of carrier bags by 70-80% in small and medium sized businesses.

They see the need to go further to protect our natural environment and oceans. Retailers are urged to prepare for the changes in the coming weeks. We need to all work together to build back greener and strengthen our action to combat plastic waste.

The inclusion of local shops and other small businesses into the plastic bag charging scheme is welcomed by the Association of Convenience Stores. They see it as a way to both help the environment and for retailers to raise money for charity.

Cutting plastics

John Lewis is trialling the removal of single use bags from some of its stores from 21 May. Customers will have to either bring their own bags or buy a reusable one made from 100% recyclable material. This will cost 50p for a medium size bag and 75p for a large one. They expect customers to support the change and will listen to their feedback.

The norm is now for people to take their own bags when food shopping, but there is a different mindset when shopping for clothes, beauty and home products.

Plastic pollution is one of the most visible environmental issues, putting wildlife at risk and damaging natural habitats. Paula Chin, sustainable materials specialist at the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) thinks measures to reduce plastics consumption need to go much further. She believes the UK government should consider a complete ban on single use bags. They also need to ensure that sales of so called “bags for life” don’t undermine efforts. They are cheaply available and often end up as single use items.

All supermarkets have tried in recent years to cut plastic use.

Last month the Co-op announced it will stop selling plastic “bags for life”. Many people only use the 10p bags once then throw them away. The retailer, which has 2,600 shops, says its move will take 29.5 million bags for life, about 870 tonnes of plastic, out of circulation every year.

Morrisons also say it will switch from offering plastic “bags for life” to a paper alternative.

Waitrose is currently trialling removing the sale of 10p bags for life from several of its stores.

Sainsbury’s say their bags for life are made from 100% recycled plastic, and cost 20p to encourage customers to reuse them.

In September last year, Tesco increased the price of its bags for life to 20p, and no longer sells single use bags.

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