Pringle backs campaign for a plastic bag free Edinburgh

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 19th Sep 2007

Edinburgh South MSP Mike Pringle is supporting calls from local Councillors for a plastic bag free Edinburgh. Liberton Lib Dem Councillor Conor Snowden has tabled an amendment to a motion on a plastic bag free Edinburgh at Thursdays full Council meeting , welcoming the fact that Mike's bill has brought a huge change in supermarkets' attitude to plastic bags and has encouraged several towns including North Berwick to go plastic bag free.

Mike said, "No one was addressing this issue when I launched my campaign back in 2003. Now we have many shops charging for bags, we have some towns going plastic bag-free and we have supermarkets agreeing to a 25% reduction in bag use by 2008. This is now a great opportunity for Edinburgh to be the first City to go bag free. I hope Councillors support this campaign."