Bag police about to invade Wales

From the 1st of October Wales will become the first UK country to introduce a charge for single use carrier bags.

The legislation, brought in by the devolved Welsh assembly,forces shops to charge 5p for single use carrier bags when people buy goods.

According to the government,the charge should be enough to influence consumer behaviour and reduce the number of bags given out without putting an unnecessary burden on shoppers, or preventing impulse shopping.

It estimates that 350 million carrier bags from the major supermarkets alone were given out in 2009 which they say equates to 273 bags per household.This,they add, does not include the bags picked up when shopping at high street stores and smaller shops.

Bags made from cloth,hessian,jute and cotton are excluded as are those needed for food safety, hygiene, animal welfare and public safety.For example food items that are unwrapped would be excluded.

However in a bid to close an obvious loophole,if an item which is not an exempt item is placed in the bag,the bag would need to be charged for.

The devolved government has made much of the fact that the money raised will not go back into its coffers but go towards good causes,preferably environmental good causes,but the business trade see this move as another stealth tax at a time when trade is difficult on the high street.

It also shot itself in the foot somewhat by announcing that a proportion of the charge subject to VAT will obviously go into government coffers.

Prepare for a legal minefield,the next time you go shopping in Wales then?