Tesco's biodegradable plastic bags do not address environmental problem

3.53.03pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 10th May 2006

The Government should look again at introducing some form of plastic bag tax

Commenting on the announcement today by Tesco that all of their bags are to be biodegradable from September this year, Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment Secretary, Chris Huhne MP said:

"Over seventeen billion plastic bags are given out by supermarkets in Britain each year. That's enough plastic in twenty years to cover the whole of England.

"Tesco may have acknowledged the problem of excessive plastic bags, but their solution suggests that they don't understand it. Biodegradable plastic bags, by creating greenhouse gases within landfill sites, in themselves can have an adverse environmental impact which may be even more of a problem than the waste itself.

"This announcement today does nothing to address the real crux of the problem which is how we reduce our waste, including plastic bags, in the first place. The Government should look again at introducing some form of plastic bag tax or charge which will make supermarkets and consumers think twice before they give away and use plastic bags in the first place."

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