Plastic bag tax - this is long overdue.

[Johnny Boy]

Chewing gum is an interesting example of a problem substance too. I chew gum regularly and enjoy it but only ever when I'm alone which due to my job is for extended periods. However it isn't biodegrable and is usually plastic or rubber based. Seems a bit odd to be chewing plastic never mind those that continuously throw it on the ground. The mess it makes is terrible. I wonder if NI introduced a chewing gum tax would it cause a problem between the USA and UK as someone mentioned earlier regarding the Irish Republic and USA / Wrigleys? If the chewing gum companies were threatened with a tax for non-biodegradable based substances then they'd soon start to look at ways to counteract this a produce a natural product that was bio-degradable. I'm not a big fan of government interference in people's lives but this is one where society would benefit from a common sense approach to tackling an obvious problem.

The Irish government dropped the chewing gum tax following intervention from the US embassy and a promise from gum manufacturers to plow €6m into an anti litter campaign and another €1M into research to make gum more bio-degradable. I doubt if that sort of money would go very far in terms of cleaning up the streets, so in other words it was a bit of a cop out. To be fair, it has to be acknowledged that if the yanks, who have ploughed a lot of investment into the south, want something badly enough, it would be hard to resist them. I suspect that if they tried to tax it up here, the same pressure would be applied, and we'd get the same result. Pragmatism always trumps principle.
That said, where I live, the worst problem is created in the area of town where rural schoolkids congregate for their buses home. I often wonder why the local council doesn't move the school bus stops to a less prominent part of town, preferably move the little bvggers out to a field somewhere.

[factual]

Lidl and M&S both charge for bags and I would support that. I see neither as a stealth tax but a common sense approach to tackling a problem. I shop in both and take recycle bags with me because of their policy.

How do you feel about a price floor on alcohol.

I remember Martina Anderson discussing that this could be unfair on the least well off as they are more affected by price floors than other demographic groups.

[Castle Ray]

How do you feel about a price floor on alcohol.

I remember Martina Anderson discussing that this could be unfair on the least well off as they are more affected by price floors than other demographic groups.

The alcohol argument is difficult one as I'm prejudiced as I like a drink and the cheaper the prices the better as far as I'm concerned. However, responsible drinking is needed given the horrendous damage it does to people and the costs to the country. The licensed trade seem to want minimum prices for supermarkets as their trade is harmed by home drinking. Yet last week the Beach Club was dishing out outrageously cheap shots and spirits and a young lad fell into the Lagan and hasn't been found. I don't think there should be minimum pricing but at the same time I don't think shops or pubs should be allowed to sell at a price lower than the tax. Anderson's argument is valid to an extent but the least well off that minimum pricing is aimed at is youth drinking. And that is a problem area. I'm open minded on the subject as I see both sides, but I'm naturally more likely to edge towards keeping regulation and government interference to a minimum.