The Government plans to tackle a “throwaway culture” as England will follow Scotland and Wales in extending the 5p charge for bags. Smalls retailers across England could involuntarily have to charge 5p for plastic bags.
The first scheme, which was introduced in 2015, legally required retailers in England with more than 250 workers to charge at least 5p for plastic bags, and the extra proceeds are donated to charity.
Chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores, James Lowman believes that the 5p charge is an effective way of reducing the circulation of plastic bags. He said, “We have long campaigned for the charge to be extended to all retailers in England, as is already the case in Scotland and Wales, and would welcome steps to make the charge universal.”
Prime Minister Theresa May intends to set out the Government's 25-year plan to improve the environment. Theresa May stated, “People often think about environment issues and wonder whether the government can have an impact on that. If you just look at one thing that we've done, in 2015 we introduced the 5p charge on carrier bags, on plastic bags. Actually we now see nine billion fewer plastic bags being used. It's making a real difference.”
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said, “We are taking significant steps to tackle plastic bags out of circulation with out carrier bag charge and introducing a ban on plastic microbeads. Our latest figures show the 5p plastic bag charge has been an enormous success in changing consumer behaviour, reducing use by 83%.”
