UK: Tax reduces single-use bag distribution in Northern Ireland by 70%

The first set of official Carrier Bag Levy statistics covering the period 8 April 2013 to 31 March 2014 have been published. These indicate that the people of Northern Ireland have embraced the carrier bag levy by reducing their consumption of single use bags dramatically.
Carrier bag usage figures for the first year of operation of the levy indicate that 84.5 million single use carrier bags were dispensed by retailers across Northern Ireland as opposed to around 300 million bags in the year prior to the levy. The 5p levy has delivered a reduction in bag numbers of 71.8% in its first year and generated net proceeds of £4.17million (News Release Northern Ireland Executive, 27 August 2014).
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