On June 3, 2014 the UK newspaper Daily Mail announced that from 2015 onwards English supermarkets will have to charge a 5 pence (GBP) fee for single use plastic bags. Currently 8 billion disposable bags are used in England annually, with each of them being used an average of 20 minutes. The Daily Mail contends that it has fought for the ban for the past 6 years. The ban will be announced to the Parliament by the Queen on June 4, 2014. Small and medium sized business will be excluded from the ban. Northern Ireland and Wales have already established a similar fee, and Scottish retailers will have to charge their customers from October 2014 onwards.
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James Chapman (June 3, 2014). “At last! Plastic bags will be banished: Victory for Mail’s six-year campaign as Ministers force reluctant supermarkets to impose 5p charge.” Daily Mail.
