The Welsh government plans to introduce a carrier bag tax in early 2011. Environment minister Jane Davidson recently told the Welsh Assembly Government (Cardiff / Wales; http://wales.gov.uk) that she was working on implementing a mandatory charge on single-use carrier bags. A draft on how the charge is supposed to work will be published in spring 2010. The tax will not include packaging for fish or meat, nor primary bags used for the sale or supply of medicines.

A steering group composed of stakeholders, such as businesses and supermarkets, will be established to advise on the content of the draft regulations. The group will determine the charge details, since retailers will be responsible both for collecting the money and for its distribution, after accounting for their own administrative costs. Davidson would like the proceeds to go directly to environmental projects. The tax is likely to be fixed between 5 pence (5.5 cents) and 15 pence (16.5 cents) per bag.

Davidson commended the seven retailers that took part in a three-year voluntary reduction programme on distribution of free carrier bags, during which a 49% reduction was achieved, just missing the 50% target. However, those seven businesses still gave away 27 million bags in Wales in May 2009, equivalent to 324 million bags a year.

“This government still holds the view that the voluntary agreement does not go far enough,” Davidson emphasised. “We have to take more action now.”