Single-use plastic carrier bags charge: data for England 2023 to 2024
Updated 19 September 2024
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2024
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/carrier-bag-charge-summary-of-data-in-england/single-use-plastic-carrier-bags-charge-data-for-england-2023-to-2024--2
Since 5 October 2015, large retailers (250 or more full-time equivalent employees) in England have been required by law to charge 5 pence for all single-use plastic carrier bags. They are also required to report certain information to Defra, including:
- the number of single-use carrier bags sold under the charge
- gross proceeds
- any costs incurred
- the use of the net proceeds
Retailers can provide information on donations and bags for life on a voluntary basis.
From 21 May 2021, the charge for single-use plastic carrier bags was raised to 10 pence and extended to all businesses, though the reporting requirements continue to apply to large retailers only. As such, the 2022 to 2023 reporting period is the first full year of data for single use carrier bags sold at 10 pence.
This publication summarises data collected by Defra for the reporting year from 7 April 2023 to 6 April 2024. We have previously published summaries for earlier years and the full datasets on data.gov.uk. This includes the details provided by each retailer.
The data for 2020 to 2021 cannot be directly compared with other years, due to unique circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these effects may have continued to have an impact in 2021 to 2022. You can find further information related to this in the 2020 to 2021 report.
The summary for 2023 to 2024 is based on data from 113 retailers who sold single-use plastic carrier bags during the reporting period.
1. Summary
The reported figures for the number of single-use plastic carrier bags distributed are shown below. The 2020 to 2021 period also shows separate, voluntary data on the number of single-use plastic carrier bags provided during the exemption period. Those figures (in the final row) are based on returns from only 4 retailers. The 2020 to 2021 figures cannot be compared with other years due to the unique circumstances related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Table 1: Key figures on the carrier bag charge (1)
| Key figures | 2023 to 2024 | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 | 2020 to 2021 | 2019 to 2020 | 2018 to 2019 | 2017 to 2018 | 2016 to 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of retailers reporting data (3) | 113 | 119 | 154 | 166 | 194 | 221 | 249 | 261 |
| Total number of single-use plastic bags sold (4) | 340 million | 406 million | 496 million | 489 million | 627 million | 1.13 billion | 1.75 billion | 2.12 billion |
| Number of single-use plastic bags sold by the main retailers (5) | 79 million | 133 million | 197 million | 294 million | 271 million | 566 million | 1.04 billion | 1.33 billion |
| Number of single-use plastic bags sold by all retailers reporting, per person of the population (6) | 7 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 20 | 32 | 38 | |
| Number of single-use plastic bags sold by the main retailers, per person of the population | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 19 | 24 |
| Number of retailers supplying voluntary information about donations to good causes (7) | 40 | 46 | 65 | 64 | 78 | 121 | 153 | 167 |
| Total amount donated to good causes (6) | £4.2 million | £6.3 million | £10 million | £11.5 million | £9.6 million | £22.9 million | £51.6 million | £65.4 million |
| Estimated number of online grocery single-use carrier bags given out (without charge) during exemption period. (Figures provided by 4 retailers only) (8) | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable | 286 million | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable |
Notes about Table 1
- Data for 2015 to 2016 covered 6 months (5 October 2015 to 6 April 2016) and is not directly comparable. The results from 2015 to 2016 are: 285 retailers reported, 1.1 billion single-use bags were sold, 600 million single-use bags were sold by the main retailers and £29.2 million was donated to good causes.
- Data for 2019 to 2020, 2020 to 2021, 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023 has been updated to incorporate updated data for a small number of retailers. Incorporating this data has increased the number of bags from 627 million to 628 million for 2019 to 2020, the number of bags increased for 2020 to 2021 but this had no impact on the rounded numbers, increased it from 496 million to 497 million for 2021 to 2022 and increased it from 406 million to 407 million for 2022 to 2023. Donation figures are also affected, one retailer provided information on donations for 2022 to 2023. The data presented in this summary for 2019 to 2020, 2020 to 2021, 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023 will not match those published previously.
- The number of retailers relates to just those who have sold single-use plastic carrier bags during the reporting period. It does not include retailers who have told us they are no longer selling single use plastic carrier bags.
- A small number of retailers have previously reported data on a voluntary basis (that is, those with less than 250 employees). These retailers account for less than 1% of all reported bags in those years. For 2023 to 2024, one retailer provided data on a voluntary basis.
- The main retailers are Asda, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, The Co-operative Group and Waitrose. For 2022 to 2023 and 2023 to 2024, Tesco and Waitrose did not sell any single-use plastic carrier bags.
- The headline figures on donations are not directly comparable between years due to changes in the retailers providing this information. At the time of reporting, some retailers did not have final figures for donations.
- Only 4 retailers provided estimates for the number of online grocery single-use bags that they distributed for free during the overlap between the exemption period (21 March 2020 to 21 September 2020) and the 2020 to 2021 reporting period. These 4 retailers estimated that they distributed 286 million online grocery bags (without charge) during the exemption period. These 4 retailers account for 36% of the total number of single-use plastic bags sold in 2020 to 2021.
For the 2022 to 2023 and 2023 to 2024 period, Tesco and Waitrose reported that they did not sell any single-use plastic carrier bags. The other main retailers (Asda, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and The Co-operative Group) sold 79 million single-use plastic carrier bags in England in 2023 to 2024. From 2022 to 2023 the main retailers sold 133 million single-use plastic carrier bags. The 5 main retailers, who sold single-use plastic carrier bags, account for around 23% of the total bags reported by all retailers for 2023 to 2024. From 2022 to 2023 the main 7 retailers accounted for 33% of total bags. From 2021 to 2022 and 2019 to 2020 the main 7 retailers accounted for 40% of total bags. From 2020 to 2021 the main 7 retailers accounted for 60% of total bags. In 2018 to 2019 they accounted for 50% of total bags and in earlier years they have accounted for around 60%.
This is equivalent to each person in the population purchasing around one single-use plastic carrier bag (from the 5 main retailers who sold bags) in 2023 to 2024.
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has previously reported that the main retailers in England issued 7.6 billion single-use carrier bags in the calendar year 2014, before the carrier bag charge was introduced. Our data indicates that, based on this year’s return, there has been a decrease of over 98% in the number of bags sold by the main retailers (over 7.56 billion bags fewer) compared to 2014.
The total number of single-use plastic bags sold by all retailers who reported in 2023 to 2024 was 340 million. From 2022 to 2023 they sold 407 million single-use plastic bags.
From 2023 to 2024, 35% of retailers reported additional information on how they chose to donate proceeds from the carrier bag charge. These retailers donated £4.2 million to good causes. The total amount of money donated to good causes because of the single-use carrier bag charge (and reported to Defra) since the charge was introduced in 2015 to 2016 is now over £210 million. The true total is likely to be higher than this as not all retailers choose to report donation figures.
2. Donations to good causes
From 2023 to 2024, 35% of retailers (who accounted for 77% of all bags reported for this period) voluntarily provided information on donations they had made to good causes. In total, these retailers donated £4.2 million to good causes. The total donation figures for each year are not directly comparable.
2.1 Amounts donated to good causes
Out of the total amount donated by retailers to good causes:
- £214,000 (5%) went to environmental or health causes
- £453,600 (11%) went to charity or volunteering sectors
- £3.6 million (84%) went to a combination of good causes, or to causes chosen by customers or staff
Figure 1: Amount donated by retailers to specific areas in 2023 to 2024 (£ million donated)
| Type of good causes | Amount donated (£ million) |
|---|---|
| Combined causes or chosen by customers or staff (1) | £3.58 million |
| Charity or volunteering | £0.45 million |
| Environment or health (2) | £0.21 million |
(1) Combined good causes means that they are related to education, arts, heritage, sports, environment, health, charity or volunteering sectors, or are causes chosen by customers or staff.
(2) Environment or health means that it includes those that donated to environment or health causes.
2.2 Types of good causes
Figure 2: Percentage of retailers donating to different types of good causes from 2023 to 2024
| Type of good causes | Percentage of retailers donating |
|---|---|
| Combined good causes or chosen by customers or staff (1) | 38% |
| Charity or volunteering | 33% |
| Environment or health (2) | 30% |
(1) Combined good causes means that they are related to education, arts, heritage, sports, environment, health, charity or volunteering sectors, or are causes chosen by customers or staff.
(2) Environment or health means that it includes those that donated to environment or health causes.
Figure 2 shows the types of good causes to which retailers donated from 2023 to 2024. This chart only covers the 40 retailers who provided this information, and includes 3 of the 7 main retailers:
- Combined good causes (relating to education, art, heritage, sports, environment, health, charity/volunteering and causes chosen by customers or staff), or to causes chosen by customers or staff was the most popular choice with 38% of retailers donating to these
- 33% of retailers donated to charity or volunteering causes
- 30% of retailers donated to environmental or health causes
3. Carrier bag use
For the 2023 to 2024 period, Tesco and Waitrose reported that they did not sell any single-use plastic carrier bags. The other main retailers (Asda, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and The Co-operative Group) sold 79 million single-use plastic carrier bags in England in 2023 to 2024. This is equivalent to each person in the population purchasing around 1 bag per year during 2023 to 2024. From 2022 to 2023 the main retailers sold 133 million single-use plastic carrier bags.
The Co-operative Group, Morrisons, Marks and Spencer and Asda saw decreases of approximately 44.3 million, 3.9 million 0.08 million, and 0.05 million bags respectively, compared to 2022 to 2023. Sainsbury’s saw an increase of 2.9 million bags compared to 2022 to 2023.
WRAP reported in 2014 that the main retailers circulated 7.64 billion single-use carrier bags in England. See WRAP’s data for England in 2014, covering 6 of the 7 retailers. Defra’s data for the reporting year 2023 to 2024 shows that the main retailers sold 79 million single-use carrier bags, a reduction of over 98% on the number of carrier bags since the charge was introduced. This is equivalent to each person in the population using around 1 bag per year during 2023 to 2024, compared to around 2 during 2022 to 2023 and around 140 in 2014 before the charge was introduced.
The total number of single-use plastic carrier bags sold by all retailers was 340 million in 2023 to 2024. In 2022 to 2023, 407 million single-use plastic bags were sold.
4. Retailers’ responsibilities
We rely on retailers who fall within the scope of the carrier bag charge to register and report their single-use plastic carrier bag data.
For the 2023 to 2024 reporting year, all retailers were required to charge a minimum of 10 pence (after 21 May 2021) per bag for carrier bags that meet all of the following criteria:
- unused – it is new and has not already been used for sold goods to be taken away or delivered
- plastic and up to 70 microns thick
- has handles, an opening and is not sealed
However, retailers with fewer than 250 employees are not required to report data to Defra. Retailers are not required by law to report on carrier bag use if they:
- do not distribute bags within the above definition of single-use plastic carrier bags
- only distribute paper bags or ‘bags for life’
- are small and medium-sized businesses with fewer than 250 full-time equivalent employees (although some report data on a voluntary basis)
Some bags are exempt from the charge, although retailers can choose to charge for them. These include plastic bags that are solely used to contain certain items, including:
- uncooked meat, poultry and fish
- unwrapped food for animal or human consumption
- unwrapped loose seeds
- flowers
- unwrapped blades
- prescription medicine
Retailers do not have to charge if the bag only contains these items but must charge if other items are added.
Read more about retailers’ responsibilities.
The legal obligation for retailers to charge for, and report the number of, single-use plastic carrier bags supplied with online deliveries (online grocery delivery bags) was temporarily removed from 21 March 2020 to 21 September 2020, during the 2020 to 2021 reporting period.
5. Notes on the data
The following retailers reported data on the number of single-use plastic carrier bags sold:
- 113 retailers in 2023 to 2024 (1 retailer reported data on a voluntary basis)
- 120 retailers in 2022 to 2023 (no retailers reported data on a voluntary basis)
- 154 retailers in 2021 to 2022 (1 retailer reported data on a voluntary basis)
- 166 retailers in 2020 to 2021 (5 retailers reported data on a voluntary basis)
- 194 retailers in 2019 to 2020 (4 retailers reported data on a voluntary basis)
- 221 retailers in 2018 to 2019 (6 retailers reported data on a voluntary basis). Some retailers did not understand the basis for the mandatory or voluntary field, so this was amended based on the number of employees they reported. Further information on this can be found in the published dataset
- 249 retailers in 2017 to 2018
- 261 retailers in 2016 to 2017
- 285 retailers in 2015 to 2016 (6 months’ data)
104 retailers reported data in both 2023 to 2024, and 2022 to 2023, and these retailers accounted for over 99% of all single use carrier bags sold in each of these reporting periods. The change in retailers reporting is unlikely to have a significant impact on trends for the aggregate figures.
For the 2023 to 2024 reporting year:
- 9 retailers provided data in 2023 to 2024 who had not in 2022 to 2023 (this includes 1 retailer which have been sold and is trading under a new name), 3 of these have provided data for the first time. These 9 retailers account for 0.4% of the total number of single-use bags reported for 2023 to 2024
- 16 retailers who submitted data for 2022 to 2023 did not report data for 2023 to 2024. In 2022 to 2023 these retailers accounted for 0.5% of the total number of single-use bags
- 7 retailers not reporting in 2023 to 2024 notified us that they have stopped issuing single-use plastic carrier bags and are therefore no longer obligated to report data. These retailers accounted for 0.02% of the single-use bags sold in 2022 to 2023
- 1 of the retailers not reporting in 2023 to 2024 went into administration and has now been sold. They have reported under this new name
- 1 of the retailers not reporting in 2023 to 2024 informed us that they are not obligated to complete a return as they have fewer than 250 employees (and are now not reporting)
- 7 retailers who did not report, did not notify us of the reason for not supplying the information. These retailers together sold 2 million bags in 2022 to 2023 (0.5% of total bags)
The data for the latest year 2023 to 2024 are not exactly comparable against the data from the previous year for 2022 to 2023, owing to differences in the list of retailers who provided data. However, this difference in the retailers reporting is unlikely to have a significant impact to the overall aggregate figure or the trend.
Retailers provide data on donations on a voluntary basis. Changes in retailers who reported donation information mean that direct comparison across years is not appropriate. This data was provided by:
- 40 retailers (35%) in 2023 to 2024. They accounted for 77% of all bags reported in 2023 to 2024. Two of the main retailers, Sainsbury’s and The Co-operative Group, (who sold single-use carrier bags in 2022 to 2023) did not report their donations
- 47 retailers (39%) in 2022 to 2023. They accounted for 72% of all bags reported in 2022 to 2023. Two of the main retailers, Sainsbury’s and The Co-operative Group, (who sold single-use carrier bags in 2022 to 2023) did not report their donations – their combined donations for 2021 to 2022 were £1.4 million
- 65 retailers (42% of retailers who reported) in 2021 to 2022. They accounted for 91% of all bags reported for 2021 to 2022
- 64 retailers (38% of retailers who reported) in 2020 to 2021. They accounted for 82% of all bags reported for 2020 to 2021. Marks and Spencer and Waitrose did not report - their combined donations for 2019 to 2020 were £0.9 million
- 78 retailers (40% of retailers who reported) in 2019 to 2020. They accounted for 78% of all bags reported for 2019 to 2020. Sainsbury’s did not report - their donations for 2018 to 2019 were £2.2 million
- 121 retailers (55% of retailers who reported) in 2018 to 2019. They accounted for 57% of all bags reported for 2018 to 2019. The Co-operative Group and Waitrose did not report - their combined donations for 2017 to 2018 were £7.7 million
- 153 retailers (61% of retailers who reported) in 2017 to 2018. They accounted for 77% of all bags reported for that period. Marks and Spencer did not report