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Putting a tax on single-use drinks cups will hit hard-pressed consumers in the pocket and do little to reduce the amount of items used, the government has been warned.
Holyrood ministers have launched a fresh consultation on the so-called “latte tax”, asking for opinions on whether a 25p minimum charge is appropriate.
They point out the Netherlands has introduced a 25-cent fee while Ireland has also passed legislation, although it has yet to implement it.
The long-mooted idea is part of the Scottish government’s Circular Economy Bill. The latest consultation also asks whether those administering the charge, which will largely be retailers and hospitality firms, should decide how the money should be spent.
The government acknowledges businesses should keep some of the money to cover the costs of running the new system. However, it suggests any excess money could be diverted to local or central government or retained by companies to put towards environmental projects.
Certain settings, such as schools and parts of hospitals or care settings, would be exempt from the rules.
No timeframe for an introduction of the levy has been decided but ministers believe it could cut waste and reduce littering. The consultation indicates some 388 million cups were used in Scotland during the 12 months to March 2022, which created 5,400 tonnes of waste.
Ewan MacDonald-Russell, the deputy head of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “Retailers are already taking action to improve the recycling of cups and reduce the use of disposable cups, including offering financial incentives to use reusable containers and changing materials to be more biodegradable.
“Therefore we question, at a time where the economy is flatlining and high streets are struggling, whether this is the time to introduce a new cost to hard-pressed consumers.
“We are sceptical at this time that the charge will make a substantial difference to the number of cups used,” he added. “We believe retailers are best placed to decide how the proceeds can help good causes in their local community.”
Government ministers pointed to the reduction in the use of plastic carrier bags when an initial 5p charge, later increased to 10p, was introduced in 2014.
Gillian Martin, the acting net zero secretary, said: “While many businesses already have offers in place to encourage the use of reusable drinks cups, hundreds of millions of single-use cups are still being discarded, creating 5,400 tonnes of waste every year.
“Many of these cups end up littering our roadsides, town centres, beaches and parks.
“Introducing a national charge could provide consistency for consumers, provide a level playing field for retail and businesses and help to drive forward sustainable behaviours.”
Calum Duncan, the head of policy and advocacy at the Marine Conservation Society, said: “Our volunteers have consistently recorded single-use disposable cups on over half of UK beaches surveyed.
“We need to see charges on these kinds of items to reduce litter in our seas and prevent it from damaging our precious marine life.
“We know that policies like this work, with our data recently showing an 80 per cent reduction in the average number of plastic carrier bags washing up on beaches since charges on them were introduced.”