Tesco has announced the two charities that will benefit from their carrier bag levy in Scotland and Wales, following votes by 27,000 customers.
Keep Scotland Beautiful and Keep Wales Tidy will use the estimated £1.8m to fund environmental and conservation projects. The Scottish levy is expected to be worth around £1m and the Welsh levy around £800,000.
More than 27,000 customers voted for which charities will partner with Tesco for Scotland and Wales, with both charities planning to use the money to fund a variety of projects to keep local communities “clean, tidy and green”.
Derek Robertson, chief executive of Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “This is fantastic news for KSB and a tremendous opportunity for Scotland, a country whose people, organisations and institutions have really wrapped their arms around KSB and shown that they care about their environment by voting for Scotland’s own environmental charity. We would like to thank everyone who voted for us.”
Lesley Jones, chief executive for Keep Wales Tidy said: “We’re delighted to have received the vote of confidence from our supporters and Tesco customers. Keep Wales Tidy campaigned hard for the introduction of the bag levy and we’re extremely pleased that it has resulted in a dramatic reduction in the use of single use carrier bags and that proceeds from the levy are being used to support environmental action.”
Both partnerships will run for an initial period of 12 months from 20 October 2014.
Following the launch of the levy in June, 120 organisations applied for the Scottish and Wales partnerships, which were then shortlisted to five. Tesco customers were then asked to vote online for which charities or environmental organisations they thought would make the best use of the money.
Greg Sage, community director for Tesco, said: “Our customers are the ones who will pay the charge, so we really wanted them to choose the charities that will benefit from it. The response was had was absolutely incredible - 27,000 people voted which is a fantastic turnout.
“Since 2011, the carrier bag levy in Wales has raised over £2.3 million for the local RSPB, which has been used for vital conservation work. Keep Scotland Beautiful and Keep Wales Tidy now have a fantastic opportunity to use the money raised from the bag charge to make a real difference to the communities they serve.”
Last September, Nick Clegg announced plans to introduce the levy on plastic bags in England, with the proceeds going to charity. He expected £70m to be raised for charity through the levy.
Last week Tesco also opened nominations for the 2014 Tesco Charity Trust Community Awards Scheme worth £200,000.
Through the scheme, one-off donations of between £500 and £2,500 are made by Tesco to registered charities and not for profit organisations that support health, opportunities for young people and environmental sustainability.
Charities and not for profit organisations have four weeks to submit their applications, and the successful applicants will be announced shortly afterwards. They can apply here.
