Waste management firm BusinessWaste.co.uk has said a 5p tax should be levied on disposable plastics bags to encourage recycling.
The company has called for England to introduce the levy and follow the example set by Wales and Northern Ireland.
BusinessWaste.co.uk commercial director Mark Hall said: “A 5p levy was introduced in Wales last year and the results have been dramatic. If that same 76 per cent fall in usage were to be reflected across the entire United Kingdom, that would take six billion bags out of circulation.
“Most people only use supermarket plastic bags because they are free and convenient at the point of sale. Remove that incentive and use will drop dramatically.
“In areas where there’s a plastic bag tax, the number one reason for having to pay the levy is forgetfulness. People only buy bags if they really have to, and it’s usually because they’ve gone shopping and left their bags at home.
“Once people get into the habit of reusing their bags, we should see year-on-year falls and fewer and fewer plastic bags in our country’s landfill.”
