- NEWS
Martin wades into abortion debateAs the Dáil committee hearings continue on the abortion bill, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has waded into the debate saying it is important that Christian believers "be, and seen to be, on the side of life, especially when life is most vulnerable".
Payment cuts see families pay rent shortfallLimits on rent supplement payments set by the Government are forcing thousands of families to make undeclared top-up payments to landlords to secure places to live.
- WORLD
Anger as North Korea launches another missileNorth Korea fired a short-range missile from its east coast, a day after launching three more of these missiles, a South Korean news agency said.
How Star Trek predicted the futureWHEN Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry first dreamed up the concept of a television show based in the unexplored universe of Outer Space in 1964, the world was a very different place.
- BUSINESS
Warnings over future of eurozoneThe eurozone is heading towards a break up unless there are moves towards much closer political and fiscal union, according to chief economist with State Street Global Advisers, Chris Probyn.
Bruton defends corporate tax rateIreland will be able to maintain its current corporation tax code in the face of international pressure to prevent multinational corporations avoid paying their fare share of tax, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton said yesterday.
- SPORT
Mayo’s statement of intentGalway 0-11 Mayo 4-16 Five minutes to go in Salthill yesterday and James Horan was still cajoling his men to sew it into Galway.
Wilkinson inspires Toulon to gloryASM Clermont Auvergne 15 Toulon 16 Not for the first time this season, a matchday performance and the result have made a mockery of the statistics.
- LIFESTYLE
What Lenny did nextLENNY Abrahamson has directed three feature films: Adam & Paul, Garage and What Richard Did.
Clothes maketh you madTrying on clothes, said Ewart, produced "sensations which bring deep peace and perfect contentment" to the female mind.
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Breaking stories
Plastic bag levy nets €166m in 10 years
By Dan Buckley
The Government levy on the use of plastic shopping bags has generated €166m for the exchequer since it was introduced 10 years ago.
The levy has also led to a fall of at least a 90% in their use in Ireland. A similar tax is set to be introduced in Northern Ireland next January.The reduction in the use by shoppers of disposable plastic bags has been welcomed by environmental organisations and by retailers.
A number of countries have since followed the Irish example, most notably a number of US states. However, it has yet to gain widespread acceptance and has been only partly introduced in the UK.
A tax of 5p per bag was introduced in Wales before Christmas, despite criticism by retailers. The British Retail Consortium had argued that educating customers, not penalising them, was the best way forward.
However, the British environmental campaigning group, We Are What We Do, yesterday praised the Irish levy, describing it as “a great idea” and called for similar restrictions to apply in the UK.
The total tax collected by Revenue from the Irish levy amounted to €10.5m in 2002, rising to a high of €26.6m in 2007 after the levy increased from 15c to 22c a bag. It has since fallen back to €17.4m in 2010, the last year for which figures are available.
Plastic bags accounted for about 5% of all litter in Ireland prior to the introduction of the levy. The most recent survey data from the National Litter Pollution Monitoring System, covering 2010, shows plastic bags constitute about 0.25% of litter pollution nationally.
A spokesman for the Department of the Environment described the levy as an outstanding success.
“Prior to the introduction of the levy, it is estimated that over 1.2bn plastic bags were dispensed free of charge at retail outlets annually, equating to roughly 328 bags per inhabitant per year.” That has since fallen to 18 per year. Exceptions still exist for certain foodstuffs like meat, fish, poultry and certain dairy products.