Plastic bag cost rises to 10p

An increase in the charge for single-use carrier bags has come into force in Scotland.

The cost has risen from 5p per bag to 10p after the initiative was backed by MSPs earlier this year.

A previous Scottish Government consultation found 80% of Scots supported increasing the charge to 10p.

Could it cause problems for shop staff?

There is however concern that there could be friction in stores when customers are asked to pay the new heightened cost.

The Scottish Grocers Federation feel the change has been far less publicised than the introduction of the original bag charge in 2014.

They are concerned that this might lead to confusion for customers and even abuse of staff - which has already increased during the pandemic.

John Lee from the Federation told us:

"Customers have had to absorb a lot of information when they go into a store about social distancing, PPE, the customer flow - so we are a bit concerned that these messages won't get across, that there could be a lack of customer awareness.

"We really want to make sure that they get this message, that the message is clear.

The environmental impact

According to Friends of the Earth Scotland, in the first year after the charge was introduced in October 2014, there was a 80% reduction in the number of plastic bags given out, preventing the use of 650 million bags.

Sarah Moyes, the organisation's plastic and circular economy campaigner, said: "Plastic bags are a vivid symbol of our throwaway culture and this small change will help to further reduce the number of plastic bags which end up littering our streets, burning in incinerators or sitting in landfill for hundreds of years.

"The huge success of the charge so far in cutting plastic waste shows the importance of targeted Government action in protecting the environment.

Looking to the future, Moyes said:

"In order to fully tackle Scotland's plastic crisis, we need the Scottish Government to move quickly to bring forward further action including the forthcoming ban on environmentally harmful single-use items like plastic straws, plates and cutlery.''

A previous Scottish Government consultation found 80% of Scots supported increasing the charge to 10p.

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