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Press Release

Welsh bag charge wrong but vote right

7 July 2010

The Welsh Assembly government (WAG) is wrong to introduce compulsory carrier bag charges for Wales but the vote on how to distribute the funds raised went the right way, said the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

The Welsh Assembly voted yesterday evening (Tuesday) to allow retailers to distribute funds raised from bag charging to charities themselves. Under a previous proposal, the net proceeds of bag charging would have gone into a central fund to be distributed by a third-party body. The vote means retailers who operate bag charging as the WAG intends will be spared that bureaucratic burden. (Third-party administration will still apply to any that do not comply).

The BRC remains opposed to bag charging. It shares the WAG's aim of reducing bag usage but believes the best way to achieve lasting change is to educate customers, not penalise them.

But, if the WAG is determined to introduce charging, it should be done in the least burdensome way possible.

Bob Gordon, British Retail Consortium head of environment said: "Penalising people with charges is wrong. Taking customers with you through education and encouragement is the way to produce a permanent change in behaviour.

"Welsh customers and retailers have already shown they're more than capable of delivering spectacular bag use reductions without the need for legislation.

"But, if the Welsh Assembly government is determined to press ahead, its scheme must be efficient.

"Using the funds raised is a secondary issue but imposing unnecessary bureaucracy would only add pointless extra costs. Retailers who comply with the charging scheme should be left free to distribute revenue in line with their own social-responsibility agendas and their own customers' expectations."



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British Retail Consortium

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