BASC has responded to a Defra consultation on how the plastic bag charge in England will work, calling for funds to be used for conservation.
BASC response
There were four key points in BASC’s response:
- BASC has recommended a voluntary guidance approach to encouraging organisations to donate their profits to good causes (if Defra have ruled out the Northern Ireland model of distributing profits).
- BASC proposes three themes for the guiding principles to retailers. These are (a) looking after England’s nature, (b) landscape scale action and ecosystem services and (c) supporting sustainable food production.
- BASC’s proposals link global, European and domestic policy and could help address gaps in funding that prevent implementation of those policies.
- Targeting profits from any plastic bag charge to the environment will help offset the reduction in funds for the environment from the new Common Agricultural Policy, public bodies grant budgets and restrictions in the use of Landfill Community Funds.
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BASC has also responded to a consultation in Scotland and submitted evidence to a House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) inquiry on plastic bag charges.