Speaking in the Welsh Assembly, Ms Davidson said that the voluntary agreement between retailers to cut the use of the bags had not gone far enough, and as a result, a consultation on draft regulations for the charge – including the level it would be set at – would be published next year.
Ms Davidson said: “I have long said that carrier bags represent a waste of resources and they are an iconic symbol of the throwaway society we live in.”
While commending the efforts of the seven retailers who are signed up to a current voluntary agreement in reducing the number of bags handed out in Wales by 49% according to figures published in May 2009, she claimed that Wales was “behind the game” compared to other countries' action on single-use bags.
And, she added: “This government still holds the view that the voluntary agreement does not go far enough and we have got to take more action now.”
Details
According to Ms Davidson, key details of the plans include:
-
Publishing draft regulations, outlining how the charge will be implemented, in spring 2010;
-
Setting up a steering group including stakeholders such as business and supermarkets to advise on the content of the regulations;
-
Developing a voluntary agreement in relation to using the receipts from the charge, with retailers managing both the collection and distribution of the money, after accounting for their administration costs – money from the charge is set to be passed to environmental and other projects;
-
Excluding certain bags from the charge, in particular primary packaging for meat and fish for hygiene reasons and primary bags used in the sale or supply of medicines;
-
Clarifying the types of bags to be included; Ms Davidson referred to an Environment Agency lifecycle analysis on bags, explaining that its results, which were expected next month, would “inform our future development of the proposals”.
Levy
Wales launched a consultation on its plans to introduce a charge for single-use carrier bags in June 2009, mooting a levy per bag of between five and 15 pence (see letsrecycle.com story).
In her speech yesterday, Ms Davidson revealed that 211 responses had been received to that consultation, and the WAG was set to publish a summary “very shortly”.
She noted that, while charges elsewhere were set at around five pence, there was “support for a higher charge”.
As and when Wales does introduce a charge, it would follow in the footsteps of the Republic of Ireland, which introduced 'Plastax Levy' in 2002 – the levy currently stands at €0.22 (20 pence) and has helped to reduce the use of single-use bags by over 90%.
Under the Climate Change Act, which became law in November 2008, the Labour government also has powers to introduce a mandatory levy for single-use bags if the current voluntary retailer agreement fails to be effective (see letsrecycle.com story).
Subscribe for free