Plastic Bag Levy regulations in Ireland came into operation on July 1st 2007. Today, if a customer requests a plastic bag, the retailer must, generally, since that date, charge €0.22 per plastic bag supplied. Of course there are exceptions; these are for bags of certain sizes, and for bags which contain fresh fruit, unpackaged vegetables, meats and certain other products.
Hereunder, Leitrim native Seamus O’Rourke, writer, director, actor, poet and independent producer extoles the unvirtuous over use of such outer packaging, as only Seamus can.
The plastic bag levy’s primary purpose was to reduce the consumption of disposable plastic bags by influencing consumer behaviour.
Moneys gathered by this levy is, we understand, remitted into the ‘Circular Economy Fund’, which is supposedly used to support initiatives in reducing waste and to promote the reuse and recycling of goods.
On a positive side, it has had a major effect on consumer behaviour since its introduction.
Annual sales of lightweight plastic bags have dropped from a high of more than 130 million to just 8.3 million at the end of 2022, with all the associated benefits for Ireland’s environment.
Alternatives to disposable plastic shopping bags, such as reusable bags are now available in shops around the country, and the consumer has changed to using these alternatives. In the grocery sector, disposable plastic bags have largely been replaced by reusable shopping bags.
Plastic shopping bags designed for re-use are exempt from this levy provided the retailer charges at least 70 cent for each bag.
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