Northern Ireland seeks to double carrier bag levy

Northern Ireland’s Environment Minister, Alex Attwood, has proposed new legislation that will double the current levy on single-use bags and extend the levy to some multiple-use bags too.

The new Carrier Bags Bill, debated in the Assembly on 11 June, seeks to increase the current levy on single-use carrier bags (which came into effect on 8 April) from five pence (p) per bag, to 10p by April 2014, and extend the new levy rate to ‘low cost reusable bags’ to prevent them being used as a ‘throw-away bag’. 

The levy – which was introduced to protect the environment by dramatically reducing the 250 million carrier bags issued in Northern Ireland – sees all money raised forwarded to the Department of the Environment (DOENI) to ‘generate a significant amount of money to help community and voluntary organisations, businesses, schools and charities improve the environment’.

According to DOENI increasing the levy to 10 pence per bag, and extending it to more bags will ‘maintain the downward trend in carrier bag consumption’.

Alex Attwood said: “The welcome for the levy confirmed to me that people here wanted to help tackle the issue of waste and make local efforts to address climate threat. I want to build on this momentum and people’s clear ambitions. That is what the new bill aims to do. 

"On 8 April I introduced a five pence levy on single use carrier bags. Early indications show that the levy has been enthusiastically received by a wide range of consumers and retailers and that the target reduction of at least 80 per cent is within our reach. 

“I intend to use the powers - once passed - conferred by the bill to extend the levy to the lower cost versions of reusable bags. At the moment, these bags can be bought for as little as five pence. If they were to remain excluded from the levy many consumers may treat them as ‘throw-away bags'."

Attwood said that before he confirms the price threshold that will determine which bags are subject to the levy, he will “hear what stakeholders, including representatives from the retail sector, have to say”. 

A letter outlining the minister's proposals was sent to key stakeholders, including groups representing retailers, last Friday (7 June) and asks for responses by 19 July 2013.

Watch a video of the carrier bag debate at Northern Ireland’s Assembly.