Ministry defends eco-tax on plastic bags

It is senseless to impose a tax differentiating between types of plastic bags when people could simply go to Sicily and purchase plastic bags at will, the Resources and Rural Affairs Ministry said.

The ministry was reacting to a statement made on Monday by Labour Environment spokesman Leo Brincat, who said that taxes should distinguish between conventional and biodegradable plastic bags.

The ministry in a statement insisted that unless the sale of plastic bags is not banned in all countries, the most effective measure to incentivise the use of bags made from alternative materials was still to impose an eco-contribution tax on plastic bags.

The spokesman pointed out that the Finance Ministry's message in the recent budget was clear: the government intends to reduce the amount of plastic bags in circulation and not collect money. To this end, he insisted, the government applied an eco-contribution of €0.15 on every bag which has to be paid upon purchase and shown in the transaction's receipt.