There's more than one way of getting cash from plastic

BYOB once commonly featured on party invitations indicating to those that were planning to attend that they should bring their own bottle. It could now be equally construed in the retail trade but with reference to bags rather than glass containers.

Next week, style store TK Maxx will become the latest high street retailer to improve its green credentials by making its customers pay for plastic bags in a bid to reduce waste and cut the one billion free plastic bags given away in Scotland every year, 80 per cent of which are handed out by supermarkets.

Although some discount chains, such as Aldi and Lidl, have been charging for bags for several years, M&S became the first high street name to impose a levy in an attempt to change shoppers' behaviour. In May they started charging 5p for its food carrier bags in a bid to encourage customers to reduce the number of bags they use and to raise money for environmental projects. Gorgie City Farm was one of the first to benefit from the scheme, with £25,000 given for improvements.

The company claims the charge has led to its customers reducing their use of plastic bags by 80 per cent.

But even recycling carrier bags is not a new concept.

Waitrose was the first supermarket to introduce a plastic "bag for life" in 1997. Sold to customers for 10p, and made from 100 per cent recycled material, bags are replaced free of charge once they are worn out. The upmarket chain and John Lewis both sell reusable, biodegradable, climate neutral jute bags.

However, many customers still choose to use free disposable carrier bags. Earlier this year Sainsbury's rejected plans to charge for single-use bags but is promoting the use of its bags for life – in 2007 it gave away 15 million free bags for life, resulting in a ten per cent reduction in the number of bags used.

In May, Morrisons also said no to plans for a plastic bag charge, insisting carrier bag use had already fallen by 13 per cent in the past 12 months.

Asda still provides free carrier bags, but the check-out assistant has to be asked for them, and various types of bags for life are also available for purchase.

Tesco rewards customers with green clubcard points for using their own bags – a scheme which saw its bag usage cut by 15 per cent to four billion between August 2006 and August 2007.

Even furniture and DIY giants Ikea and B&Q have introduced charges and Debenhams is looking into a similar scheme later in the year.

Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: "All of this certainly should have an impact. Evidence shows that charging for plastic bags can reduce their use by more than 90 per cent."

Edinburgh South Liberal Democrat MSP Mike Pringle has also welcomed the shift and is hoping for a revival of his plans to introduce a 10p levy on plastic bags.

Mr Pringle's Member's Bill for an "environmental levy" on plastic bags failed to win the support of the then environment committee in September 2006, and was then withdrawn.

But following consultation earlier this year, the Scottish Government's draft Scottish Climate Change Bill is due to be published by the end of 2008, and Mr Pringle hopes his bag tax will be incorporated.

He said: "I hope the SNP will include my bill in their Climate Change Bill.

"It is amazing some of the big supermarkets are not doing this already – they could charge for plastic bags, donate the money to charity, and still save a fortune on the cost of producing bags.

"Marks and Spencer are the first to jump in but I think other supermarkets will follow suit – whether voluntarily or through Government legislation. The demise of the plastic bag is inevitable."

Based on the experience of Ireland, where a similar charge was introduced in 2002, Mr Pringle insisted the 10p tax could cut plastic bag use by up to 90 per cent.

In the first three months after the Republic's "plastax" was introduced, shops handed out just over 23 million plastic bags – about 277 million fewer than before.

And in Australia a voluntary code for shops has seen the number of plastic bags used there fall by some 45 per cent.

Mr Pringle calculated the levy could earn Edinburgh more than £800,000 a year to be spent on environmental projects.

But the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) claimed the move would hit its members the hardest and said big supermarkets – from which six out of ten city shoppers still leave with free plastic bags – should be targeted rather than smaller traders who already self-regulate their usage because of the amount it costs them to provide bags.