A packaging firm in England has claimed that the 5p charge on plastic bags introduced in the UK last year is the reason it has gone bust.
According to the BBC, forty staff have lost their jobs at Nelson Packaging's factory in Lancashire after its owners said the bag tax's impact had been "far, far more challenging" than expected.
Its managing director Michael Flynn "the English bag legislation and corresponding impact on customer and retailer demand" had made the business slump, but also said "aggressive overseas competition" played a role.
England was the last UK nation to introduce plastic bag tax after successful trials in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.
Some 7.6 billion plastic bags were issued by supermarkets in England in 2014. The new legislation is expected to reduce consumption by up to 80 per cent.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by John Golden. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
