Hansard

Thank you, Presiding Officer.

Having opposed the draft Single Use Carrier Bags Charge (Scotland) Regulations 2014 when they came before the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee last week, I think that it is only right that I explain to the Parliament why I took that action.

I very much share the Government’s desire to reduce litter and indeed to reduce the use of single-use carrier bags, as do my colleagues, but I simply do not accept that the draft regulations will bring about those laudable aims. We have been assured that they are evidence based, but I have asked myself several times on what evidence they are based, because much of the evidence seems to me to be conflicting.

In Ireland, it was claimed that the use of plastic carrier bags fell markedly—indeed, by up to 90 per cent—following the introduction of similar legislation, yet the demand for plastic film rose by more than 30 per cent to some 29,000 tonnes as consumers turned to different types of plastic carriers for their convenience. In Wales, the use of paper bags also fell dramatically following legislation, but paper bag usage is now back to the same level that it was at before the legislation was introduced. Those evidence bases have apparently been largely ignored by the Scottish Government.

My main concern lies in the field of food safety. I believe that the Government is wrong to include in the regulations carrier bags for the fast food and food-to-go sectors. There is evidence that the single paper biodegradable bag in which people receive and transport carry-out meals can actually help to reduce litter by acting as a receptacle for all the various individual items of packaging that such a meal requires. Those bags will not and indeed should not be reused, and some valid concerns are being aired that show that the reuse of any bags for edible food purposes, especially hot food, carries real health risks.

If that is not enough, I hope those members who represent Kirkcaldy are aware that Smith Anderson of Kirkcaldy, which is a major supplier of paper bags to both Burger King and McDonald’s, estimates that the legislation would cost as many of 40 jobs out of its workforce.

I do not believe that the measure will reduce litter or the overall demand for plastic. There is a real risk of reduced food safety by including the food-to-go sector, and I, for one, do not want 40 jobs to disappear in Kirkcaldy as a result of the legislation.