Today sees the imposition of Nanny's 5p (minimum - watch out for retailers trying to screw you) plastic bag tax in England.
Staff at major retailers will ask you to pay the charge at checkouts. At self-checkouts, you will be asked to declare how many bags you have used and the charge will be applied (make sure you lie).
The charge applies to “single-use” thin plastic bags – the technical specification is:
- unused
- plastic
- has handles
- 70 microns thick or less
The law does not actually specify how much the bags should cost, but retailers have been told to charge at least 5p.
If you are getting food delivered from a major supermarket, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and Tesco will give you the option of a bagless delivery, or a flat rate of 40p. Morrisons and Ocado are charging 5p for each bag used, but will pay 5p for every bag returned.
The legislation applies to all types of shops, but only to retailers with more than 250 employees. However, watch out for your local shop trying to make extra money.
Where, oh where, does the money go?
Wherever the retailers wish!
Yes, that's right, wherever the retailers wish.
In other words they can keep it!
Nanny "expects" retailers to donate the money to worthy causes, and will be asking for reports on where the money goes.
"It's OK, the £1.5 BILLION bag tax is going to charity" pic.twitter.com/4yyn4PIJMU
— Old Holborn (@Holbornlolz) October 5, 2015Needless to say Nanny gets her share too.
How?
Via VAT, Nanny has predicted an income of £19m a year from the VAT charged on the bags.
Ker Farking Ching!
Happy Plastic Bag Tax Day Everyone!
Visit The Orifice of Government Commerce and buy a collector's item.
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Been the same law and tax in San Francisco, California, USA for close to 5 years now, maybe longer and the entire state of California, USA plans on making it statewide soon. Bag manufacturers complain and studies showed that paper sacks are more detrimental to the environment than plastic, since paper requires deforestation and higher cost to transport.
ReplyDeleteBut similar to how false cause was brought against "Big Tobacco" deemed "evil" and nearly put out of business, thus "Big Plastic" is getting the same Californication Treatment by way of false "studies", until they learn to drop their lawsuits and opposition and do as they are told.
In the end, retailers get a new revenue stream and support the anti-plastic religion as does government which gets the extra sales tax and enough anti-plastic propaganda effect it can require only government-sold plastic bags be used for mandatory in-home slop bucket recycling bins as the propaganda-umbrella effect reaches beyond just the in-store bans, fees and tax and extends to all things plastic, on into the future.
"Big Plastic", meet "Big Tobacco". You, are now next. And have been banned.
(And, to all the gun-owners in the U.S., "Big Gun" is on that same list and all your failures to oppose the smoking bans, early on, now the plastic bans, will lead to your guns being banned - in the long run. So, so much for being a "patriot" and "lover of liberty" then, as what comes around, goes around, in the end. And, additional warnings, are clearly futile. So suffer in silence, when the time arrives.)
I go into a supermarket 'local' every evening and Sat and Sun. The 'free' plastic bag I used to re-use. Today I bought a roll of pedal bin liners and use one to pack the rest of the shopping in. so, still using a plastic bag and still, sod it, giving to HMG but not to a charity which I might not support, or to increase the profits of Sainsbury. Are they obliged to publish which charity they're passing the 4p on to or, if not, obliged to state that they're just going to keep it?
ReplyDeleteThe roll of pedal bin liners will stay in my car - I really, really don't have time to remember to unpack my shopping and put the bloody bag back in the car until such time as I can find a window to weave a bag from foraged twigs.
Will the 5p charge Save The Planet? Snort!
Jay
It is a ludicrous law, but then one has to ask "when did Cameron not follow greeen and labour ideas". He is a fraud modelled on that previous on Blair whose aim was the criminalise everyone Just where did Camo get his anti English ideas from?
ReplyDeleteIt also does not apply to bags made from paper and cardboard, which many clothes retailers use.
ReplyDeleteAlways a way round it.
To be honest, I have always taken bags with because it was always normal to do so.
ReplyDeleteMy problem with this new law is that it interferes with a business right to decide how it runs its business.....I do not think a true Conservative would bring in such a law. Mr Cameron is BluLabour ant not what I would call a Conservative.
It is the same with the living wage legislation and Call me Dave's policy to give fine money raised to charity.
Any way, back to the bags....These new rules will stop me from making impulse buys whilst out and about.
At the checkout yesterday, I asked the operator to go slower because I would only take what I could fit into my own bags. I stated that I did not wish to give to a charity I may not support.
Like so many pieces of legislation, if people just accept it with out question, it will never change, if enough people say and do what I suggested, it will have to change because retailers will get fed up having to put the shopping back.