BRC slams plan for bag charge |
| Industry News | |
| Thursday, 05 November 2009 | |
 The British Retail Consortium has hit out at plans to introduce charges for carrier bags in Wales within 18 months.BRC business environment director Tom Ironside said: "The best way to achieve lasting change is to educate customers, not penalise them." Wales would be the first country in the UK to start charging for carrier bags, taking advantage of powers provided under the Climate Change Act. The Welsh Assembly Environment minister Jane Davidson said the charge would be introduced at the start of 2011 and that she would seek agreements with large retailers to give the proceeds to environmental causes. "This government still holds the view that the voluntary agreement does not go far enough and we have to take more action now," Davidson said. But Ironside countered: "Education and encouragement, rather than compulsion, is the best way to achieve lasting customer change. "For some reason bags have been seized on as a symbol of our use of resources, despite their relatively low environmental impact. "By introducing a bag charge, Wales becomes the first country in the UK to impose extra charges on shoppers at a time when they're already feeling the pinch. This will especially hit low-income families." The compulsory charge for single-use bags is expected to be between 5p and 15p.
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