Govt urged to double plastic-bag levy to 30c

The Irish Business Against Litter organisation is calling on the Government to double the plastic-bag levy from 15c to 30c.

The levy was introduced a number of years ago in an effort to reduce the amount of plastic bags littering urban and rural areas.

It immediately led to a significant reduction in the amount of bags being used, but IBAL says the deterrent effect is now beginning to wear off.

It is predicting that 130 million bags will be used this year, compared to 80 million in the 12 months following the introduction of the levy.

Meanwhile, IBAL has also published a new survey showing that litter levels in Dublin are 15% higher than the rest of the country.

Ballymun is identified as the dirtiest area of Dublin,, while Blackrock is named as the cleanest.

More than 30% of the 20 areas surveyed were found to be litter blackspots, while just 25% were found to be litter-free.