Tax on Shopping Bags Nets $3.45 Million
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A tax on plastic shopping bags raised $3.45 million in its first three months and has slashed use of the bags 90%, the government said.
In March, Ireland introduced a 15-cent surcharge on every plastic bag dispensed by shops. The program, which aims to reduce waste and litter, is being closely watched by other countries, with authorities in Britain and the U.S. expressing interest in copying it.
Before the tax, it was estimated that Ireland’s 3.9 million people were using 1.2 billion bags a year.
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