News

Packaging’s parliamentary champion, Eric Illsley MP, led the defence of plastic carrier bags by opposing the London Local Authorities (Shopping Bags) Bill in its second reading in late January.

Illsley, the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on packaging, justified his objection because it “gave time” to discuss a Bill based on “misguided” information on the impact of bans or taxes.

London Councils, which presented the Bill to obtain powers to introduce a ban, will now need to argue its case in a full debate.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) also made a joint petition against the Bill, saying it would “create an army of council bag-ban enforcers” with powers to “burst into premises, demand evidence and issue fines”.

A BRC spokesman warned that a ban would do “almost nothing” for the environment, but had implications for business. “There could be situations where you have shops on one side of a street that can’t give out bags but on the other side they can.”

European Plastic Films also criticised the focus on plastic in cases where restrictions applied to all bags, and said that many initiatives used as models to support bans had been “misinterpreted and not seen in their proper context”.

Marks & Spencer is trialling a 5p charge for carrier bags in South West England. If successful, it is likely to be introduced in all UK stores.