In case you missed the government has announced that the Single-Use Carrier Bag Charge – which has been hugely successful in reducing plastic bag usage - will be doubled to 10p and extended to all retailers.

The Environment Secretary, George Eustice told reporters: " We have all seen the devastating impact plastic bags have on the oceans and on precious marine wildlife, which is why we are taking bold and ambitious action to tackle this issue head on.

"The UK is already a world-leader in this global effort, and our carrier bag charge has been hugely successful in taking billions of harmful plastic bags out of circulation. But we want to go further by extending this to all retailers so we can continue to cut unnecessary waste and build back greener.

I hope our pioneering track record on single-use plastics will inspire many more countries to follow suit, so we can take on plastic waste together and implement lasting change."

The existing charge was first introduced in 2015 and stands at 5p and applies to any retailer employing 250 or more people. It is claimed that it has led to a 95 per cent cut in plastic bag sales in major supermarkets.

The proposal to double the charge to 10p and extend it to all retailers was made in a public consultation last year, and will be implemented from April 2021.