Irish levy on plastic bags

The Irish plastic bag levy was introduced in March 2002 under the Waste Management Regulations 2001 (15 cent per bag, increased to 22 cent in 2007). The Irish Government’s intention was to set a rate of tax which would act to change consumer behaviour, i.e. discourage the use of single-use plastic bags. A consultancy study carried out in 1999 recommended that the levy be set at a rate in excess of 4 cent per bag (the minimum rate estimated to start influencing consumer behaviour). In the event it was decided to set the levy at 15 cent and to monitor the results on an on-going basis. This rate proved to be initially effective in achieving the desired result, in that the rate of usage of single use plastic bags immediately declined to 21 bags per person per year. However a subsequent gradual increase in plastic bag usage led to the levy being increased by 7 cent (the maximum allowed increase under the legislation) to 22 cent in 2007.

The tax is passed directly to consumers at the point of sale, and has thus been reported to provide a clearer, more consistent message than systems where retailers are responsible for the levy. The tax was implemented to “change consumers’ behaviour, to reduce the presence of plastic bags in the rural landscape and to increase public awareness of littering”. Revenues from the tax are paid into an Environmental Fund which is administered by the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government. The fund is used to cover administrative costs (3% of total revenues) and support a wide range of environmental programmes. The costs of implementation are reported to be very low because most businesses use the same process in their bookkeeping and reporting on the plastic bag levy as on their VAT reporting.

It has been reported that this policy has been very effective and has ‘proved so popular with the Irish public that it would be politically damaging to remove it'. There was a marked decrease in the use of plastic bags in the short term, a trend which reversed slightly over the years, but which was countered by the increase in the plastic bag levy in 2007. This increase has achieved the desired result in that the usage of single-use plastic bags has declined to an estimated 18 bags per person per year in 2010.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:  WILLIAM.CULBERT@ENVIRON.IE

General data

Waste prevention activity data