The UK government is planning to double the cost of a carrier bag at all supermarkets in a bid to combat plastic waste.
British shoppers will now be required to pay 10p per carrier bag, up from the current 5p, under new measures set to be introduced by environment secretary Michael Gove.
It is believed that the changes will come into effect from January 2020.
'Extremely Successful'
“The 5p single-use plastic carrier bag charge has been extremely successful in reducing the amount of plastic we use in our everyday lives,” Gove said.
“Between us, we have taken over 15 billion plastic bags out of circulation.
“But we want to do even more to protect our precious planet and today’s announcement will accelerate further behaviour change and build on the success of the existing charge.”
The 5p levy on plastic bags was introduced in 2015.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
