Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of policies designed to reduce the use of plastic bags by retailers and consumers; and what further policies they envisage in that area.

Since the introduction of the 5 pence carrier bag charge in October 2015, retailer reporting shows a dramatic drop in the consumption of single use plastic carrier bags, with the seven major retailers distributing around nine billion fewer single use plastic bags (a reduction of around 83%) compared to typical pre-charge levels.

The Single Use Carrier Bags Charges (England) Order 2015 requires the Secretary of State to carry out a review of this order before 5 October 2020.