27 July 2012

Can the shopping bag ban be overturned?

| Mr Gillespie
Join the conversation
136

As we head into the the 2012 ACT Election, a time when we are allowed the opportunity only available once every 4 years, to have our say in who gets seats in the ACT Legislative Assembly, I ask the question that affects our lives every time we have to get the groceries.

Can the plastic shopping bag ban be overturned?

Will the new Assembly overturn ACT Labor’s regrettable decision banning free shopping bags at Canberra checkouts?

When you go to the polling booth in 2 month’s time, please think about the injustice you have to endure each and every time you have to find something to carry all your groceries in, before you give your mark of approval to Labor or the Greens on your ballot paper.

Join the conversation

136
All Comments
  • All Comments
  • Website Comments
LatestOldest
davo10111:54 am 06 Aug 12

HenryBG said :

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd said :

Maybe the part where grocery prices didn’t go down after the “not free” bags were banned?

How would you ever measure this? The cost of the old bags would have been some fraction of a percent of the sale price.

What you need to realise is this is just another example of where business has chosen to use a government regulation to make money. The real cost for them to comply with the law is about 3c a bag but I’m sure they are quite happy to charge you 10-20c for it. You can tell the Liberals aren’t stupid, in their press release they say:

If businesses have adapted to the ban and would like to continue charging for bags, they are welcome to do so.

They know their business mates are quite happy with the arrangement where they can make money on the bags they supply you.

Reply
Mysteryman10:41 am 06 Aug 12

I am going to laugh very hard if the Liberals get elected and the ban gets lifted. Just imagine the other crusades Mr Gillespie will undertake with the new found sense of achievement resulting from such a victory.

Reply
Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd9:14 am 06 Aug 12

HenryBG said :

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd said :

What part of they where never free do you not get?

Maybe the part where grocery prices didn’t go down after the “not free” bags were banned?

Did youy take before and after costing of all products at all grocery stores in canberra?

Reply
HenryBG8:07 am 06 Aug 12

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd said :

What part of they where never free do you not get?

Maybe the part where grocery prices didn’t go down after the “not free” bags were banned?

Reply
Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd6:47 am 06 Aug 12

What part of they where never free do you not get?

Reply
bigfeet6:46 am 06 Aug 12

Mr Gillespie said :

And we are still yet to hear of any grocery shops (Woolworths, Coles, IGA) offering alternatives (eg. paper bags) WITHOUT charging customers for them.

Personally, I hope they overturn the ban, but the shops keep charging for bags. That would be amusing.

The $2.00 a year it would cost me, and every other normal person who can manage to remember their bags 90% of the time, would be worth it just to watch your head explode.

Reply
HenryBG5:14 am 06 Aug 12

Mr Gillespie said :

The following article appears in today’s paper:
—————————
Libs push for bag ban results before poll

August 6, 2012

The ACT government has been criticised for leaving a review of its controversial plastic bag ban until after the election.

The Canberra Liberals say voters should go to the polls understanding how effective the ban has been – or not.

The Liberals have yet to make a final decision but are considering going to the election with a policy to lift the plastic bag ban.

That would be in contrast to the 2004 election when the Liberals promised to ban free plastic bags in the ACT.

Advertisement
Opposition Leader Zed Seselja said last night ”a lot had changed since then”, with information from independent bodies such as the Productivity Commission questioning the value of a ban.

The ACT Greens, meanwhile, say they doubt the issue of plastic bags will be a game-changer in the upcoming election and believe a repeal of the ban would be ”very counterproductive”.

Environment Minister Simon Corbell says under the act the review was not meant to occur until November 2013, two years after the ban started. But he had brought it forward by 12 months, saying it couldn’t be done any earlier. ”A full year’s data is required as a minimum to allow for an effective review,” he said.

Mr Seselja said at least some preliminary results should be made available to the electorate.

”The government is denying voters an understanding of the ban’s environmental impacts by not undertaking a review until after the election,” he said.

The review will take place in November – after the October 20 election – and for the first time provide figures on the amount of plastic bags, bin liners and other plastic packaging that has been used since the ban came into force in November last year.

The review will also look at the number of plastic bags in litter in the ACT, South Australia and Northern Territory, where bans are in force, against states that do not have a plastic bag ban.

Mr Corbell said the government would also look to a plastic bag advisory committee, set up by the Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate, to ”assist in the review of the ban and its impact on supermarkets and retailers through looking at data on the provision or sale of plastic bags, reusable bags and bin liners both prior to and after the ban”.

Mr Corbell couldn’t say if the government would change its stance.

”It would be premature to speculate on the outcomes of the review,” he said.

The new laws ban thin plastic bags of 35 microns or less but allows other thicker bags, with most supermarkets charging their customers for them.

Mr Seselja said there were questions over the value of the ban.

”The Canberra Liberals voted against the plastic bag ban because evidence from the Productivity Commission, the British [Environment Protection Authority] and the local EPA showed it was unnecessary and potentially environmentally counterproductive,” he said.

”We’re now considering whether to take the policy of overturning the ban to the election to once again give customers and businesses choice. We’ll continue to consult with business and the community before making a final decision.”

Greens spokeswoman on territory and municipal affairs Caroline Le Couteur said while it would be preferable to have the review results before the election, it wasn’t ”disastrous” to get them after the poll.

Ms Le Couteur said the Greens mid-year contacted every supermarket in Canberra to gauge the effects of the plastic bag ban. They received eight responses, including from some Coles, Woolworths and IGA supermarkets. ”Everyone said there was no doubt the use of plastic bags had fallen,” she said.

Source: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/libs-push-for-bag-ban-results-before-poll-20120805-23oa4.html

———————–
This basically means that:
1. It is not out of the question the Canberra Liberals would try to repeal the ban after all (despite them saying that they would have introduced a ban then found it counter-productive due to costs)
2. The review (which allows for a full year of data on alleged impacts on the environment) is not due till after the election (whose date cannot be changed, and the 4-year term cannot be changed)
3. The article notes that most supermarkets do charge for bags, which is why this ban is a problem

Since I raised this thread, discussion revolved weaselling around around business models (who pays for the consequences of this legislation and the idea that bags were “free” before, with distracting points like to do with “entitlements”), and as for the question of importance, and me being silly for bringing the issue up with this thread, I say this: why was it so important to ban plastic bags under a certain thickness in the first place?

I understand that the bags that are banned were flimsy and fell apart easily but nowhere in the Government’s literature does that get mentioned.

And we are still yet to hear of any grocery shops (Woolworths, Coles, IGA) offering alternatives (eg. paper bags) WITHOUT charging customers for them.

Repealing the stupid ban would be worth it just to see the sour look it’ll put on the faces of all the over-earnest vegetarians.

I now buy plastic bags when I go shopping (yeah – weirdly, I’m not in the habit of wandering around with a pile of my own bags under my arm), which means the plastic bags that go in landfill from my house are now thick things that aren’t going to decompose in a hurry, unlike the banned ones.

Reply
DrKoresh1:38 am 06 Aug 12

Mr Gillespie said :

The following article appears in today’s paper:
—————————
Libs push for bag ban results before poll

August 6, 2012

The ACT government has been criticised for leaving a review of its controversial plastic bag ban until after the election.

The Canberra Liberals say voters should go to the polls understanding how effective the ban has been – or not.

The Liberals have yet to make a final decision but are considering going to the election with a policy to lift the plastic bag ban.

That would be in contrast to the 2004 election when the Liberals promised to ban free plastic bags in the ACT.

Advertisement
Opposition Leader Zed Seselja said last night ”a lot had changed since then”, with information from independent bodies such as the Productivity Commission questioning the value of a ban.

The ACT Greens, meanwhile, say they doubt the issue of plastic bags will be a game-changer in the upcoming election and believe a repeal of the ban would be ”very counterproductive”.

Environment Minister Simon Corbell says under the act the review was not meant to occur until November 2013, two years after the ban started. But he had brought it forward by 12 months, saying it couldn’t be done any earlier. ”A full year’s data is required as a minimum to allow for an effective review,” he said.

Mr Seselja said at least some preliminary results should be made available to the electorate.

”The government is denying voters an understanding of the ban’s environmental impacts by not undertaking a review until after the election,” he said.

The review will take place in November – after the October 20 election – and for the first time provide figures on the amount of plastic bags, bin liners and other plastic packaging that has been used since the ban came into force in November last year.

The review will also look at the number of plastic bags in litter in the ACT, South Australia and Northern Territory, where bans are in force, against states that do not have a plastic bag ban.

Mr Corbell said the government would also look to a plastic bag advisory committee, set up by the Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate, to ”assist in the review of the ban and its impact on supermarkets and retailers through looking at data on the provision or sale of plastic bags, reusable bags and bin liners both prior to and after the ban”.

Mr Corbell couldn’t say if the government would change its stance.

”It would be premature to speculate on the outcomes of the review,” he said.

The new laws ban thin plastic bags of 35 microns or less but allows other thicker bags, with most supermarkets charging their customers for them.

Mr Seselja said there were questions over the value of the ban.

”The Canberra Liberals voted against the plastic bag ban because evidence from the Productivity Commission, the British [Environment Protection Authority] and the local EPA showed it was unnecessary and potentially environmentally counterproductive,” he said.

”We’re now considering whether to take the policy of overturning the ban to the election to once again give customers and businesses choice. We’ll continue to consult with business and the community before making a final decision.”

Greens spokeswoman on territory and municipal affairs Caroline Le Couteur said while it would be preferable to have the review results before the election, it wasn’t ”disastrous” to get them after the poll.

Ms Le Couteur said the Greens mid-year contacted every supermarket in Canberra to gauge the effects of the plastic bag ban. They received eight responses, including from some Coles, Woolworths and IGA supermarkets. ”Everyone said there was no doubt the use of plastic bags had fallen,” she said.

Source: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/libs-push-for-bag-ban-results-before-poll-20120805-23oa4.html

———————–
This basically means that:
1. It is not out of the question the Canberra Liberals would try to repeal the ban after all (despite them saying that they would have introduced a ban then found it counter-productive due to costs)
2. The review (which allows for a full year of data on alleged impacts on the environment) is not due till after the election (whose date cannot be changed, and the 4-year term cannot be changed)
3. The article notes that most supermarkets do charge for bags, which is why this ban is a problem

Since I raised this thread, discussion revolved weaselling around around business models (who pays for the consequences of this legislation and the idea that bags were “free” before, with distracting points like to do with “entitlements”), and as for the question of importance, and me being silly for bringing the issue up with this thread, I say this: why was it so important to ban plastic bags under a certain thickness in the first place?

I understand that the bags that are banned were flimsy and fell apart easily but nowhere in the Government’s literature does that get mentioned.

And we are still yet to hear of any grocery shops (Woolworths, Coles, IGA) offering alternatives (eg. paper bags) WITHOUT charging customers for them.

God, is it just the fact you have to pay 10c for them that’s got you so butthurt? Because I’m willing to pay for all your shopping bags for the rest of your life if you just stop whinging about it, and I’m currently unemployed!

Reply
Mr Gillespie1:30 am 06 Aug 12

The following article appears in today’s paper:
—————————
Libs push for bag ban results before poll

August 6, 2012

The ACT government has been criticised for leaving a review of its controversial plastic bag ban until after the election.

The Canberra Liberals say voters should go to the polls understanding how effective the ban has been – or not.

The Liberals have yet to make a final decision but are considering going to the election with a policy to lift the plastic bag ban.

That would be in contrast to the 2004 election when the Liberals promised to ban free plastic bags in the ACT.

Advertisement
Opposition Leader Zed Seselja said last night ”a lot had changed since then”, with information from independent bodies such as the Productivity Commission questioning the value of a ban.

The ACT Greens, meanwhile, say they doubt the issue of plastic bags will be a game-changer in the upcoming election and believe a repeal of the ban would be ”very counterproductive”.

Environment Minister Simon Corbell says under the act the review was not meant to occur until November 2013, two years after the ban started. But he had brought it forward by 12 months, saying it couldn’t be done any earlier. ”A full year’s data is required as a minimum to allow for an effective review,” he said.

Mr Seselja said at least some preliminary results should be made available to the electorate.

”The government is denying voters an understanding of the ban’s environmental impacts by not undertaking a review until after the election,” he said.

The review will take place in November – after the October 20 election – and for the first time provide figures on the amount of plastic bags, bin liners and other plastic packaging that has been used since the ban came into force in November last year.

The review will also look at the number of plastic bags in litter in the ACT, South Australia and Northern Territory, where bans are in force, against states that do not have a plastic bag ban.

Mr Corbell said the government would also look to a plastic bag advisory committee, set up by the Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate, to ”assist in the review of the ban and its impact on supermarkets and retailers through looking at data on the provision or sale of plastic bags, reusable bags and bin liners both prior to and after the ban”.

Mr Corbell couldn’t say if the government would change its stance.

”It would be premature to speculate on the outcomes of the review,” he said.

The new laws ban thin plastic bags of 35 microns or less but allows other thicker bags, with most supermarkets charging their customers for them.

Mr Seselja said there were questions over the value of the ban.

”The Canberra Liberals voted against the plastic bag ban because evidence from the Productivity Commission, the British [Environment Protection Authority] and the local EPA showed it was unnecessary and potentially environmentally counterproductive,” he said.

”We’re now considering whether to take the policy of overturning the ban to the election to once again give customers and businesses choice. We’ll continue to consult with business and the community before making a final decision.”

Greens spokeswoman on territory and municipal affairs Caroline Le Couteur said while it would be preferable to have the review results before the election, it wasn’t ”disastrous” to get them after the poll.

Ms Le Couteur said the Greens mid-year contacted every supermarket in Canberra to gauge the effects of the plastic bag ban. They received eight responses, including from some Coles, Woolworths and IGA supermarkets. ”Everyone said there was no doubt the use of plastic bags had fallen,” she said.

Source: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/libs-push-for-bag-ban-results-before-poll-20120805-23oa4.html

———————–
This basically means that:
1. It is not out of the question the Canberra Liberals would try to repeal the ban after all (despite them saying that they would have introduced a ban then found it counter-productive due to costs)
2. The review (which allows for a full year of data on alleged impacts on the environment) is not due till after the election (whose date cannot be changed, and the 4-year term cannot be changed)
3. The article notes that most supermarkets do charge for bags, which is why this ban is a problem

Since I raised this thread, discussion revolved weaselling around around business models (who pays for the consequences of this legislation and the idea that bags were “free” before, with distracting points like to do with “entitlements”), and as for the question of importance, and me being silly for bringing the issue up with this thread, I say this: why was it so important to ban plastic bags under a certain thickness in the first place?

I understand that the bags that are banned were flimsy and fell apart easily but nowhere in the Government’s literature does that get mentioned.

And we are still yet to hear of any grocery shops (Woolworths, Coles, IGA) offering alternatives (eg. paper bags) WITHOUT charging customers for them.

Reply
HenryBG10:26 am 31 Jul 12

DJ Mac said :

Anyway the bags were never “free” you were just paying for them through the cost of the groceries anyway, the bags have always cost the stores money and they always covered the cost

Yep, I felt sorry for all the supermarkets having to go right around their stores following the bag ban to reprice everything taking into account the fact they were no longer providing plastic bags whose cost was factored into the groceries…….they *did* remove the cost of the bags from the price of the groceries, right?

Reply
Baldy9:48 am 31 Jul 12

astrojax said :

hrrmmph, you’ve all got so much money you can go shopping. we used to have to steal shoe boxes from middle of’t road and eat them.

hey jb, can we have a new ‘mully-like’ award for the most puerile posts of the month? mebbe a stuffed hessian bag would do just dandy – we could inscribe the winner’s name in henna.

I love this idea. Can we johnboy, can we?

Reply
Baldy9:41 am 31 Jul 12

GardeningGirl said :

I took one of my often reused and now illegal bags into a store and they tried to convince me to put my purchase in a new legal thicker bag of theirs instead. I wish I could see the ban as a good first step in changing silly wasteful habits but it just seems like a token inconvenient joke. However, since this forum has a regular contributor from the Greens can I ask if there’s any more plastic they’re looking at reducing? I can think of a few examples of really silly unnecessary unreusable plastic and I’d be happy to learn that they’re looking at it and have a plan for real progress.

+1

Reply
Baldy9:35 am 31 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Baldy #98
Sorry, but I happen to think housing really is an issue deserving priority, and I could say someone thought banning plastic bags below a certain thickness was a “priority” in the first place! so don’t play the priority card with me!

And yet you are going on about unbanning thin plastic bags because some shops decide to charge for then. Which is about a trivial political issue I can think about seeing as it’s not the government that is charging you for them but the shops.

I’m not saying that housing isn’t a priority, I am just saying that I think it is interesting you put you getting free plastic bags whenever you want over the equality for everybody in as society that is a developed country, and you call one trival but not the other.

I think that this is very common when people talk politics. If it effects me it’s a big issue, if it doesn’t it’s not.

You are passionate about the bags and think they are an issue we don’t and think your crazy for making it one.

I think Equality for everyone is a big issue and you don’t and think I’m being trivial.

I don’t think you are converting many people to your cause on this because it doesn’t really efect anyones lives that badly.

Reply
DJ Mac10:14 pm 30 Jul 12

It’s so easy – you go shopping – you take your wallet, shopping list and bags. Not a great challange to the average adult – OK I admit I have bags in my handbag, desk at work and my glove box, but still it isn’t rocket science.

Anyway the bags were never “free” you were just paying for them through the cost of the groceries anyway, the bags have always cost the stores money and they always covered the cost – at least this way it’s more up front. Why should I, who has taken bags with me when I have gone shopping for years be forced to subsidise someone else who is too lazy/disorganised/apathetic to bring their own?

Reply
bundah10:13 pm 30 Jul 12

troll-sniffer said :

I didn’t read all of this thread due to the inanity of the subject and the responses on page one, but I did wonder briefly if anyone managed to bring cyclists into0 one of the comments

No but Mr.G did draw an analogy to the carbon tax but fortunately by that stage most of us had experienced symptoms of asphyxia and had almost expired.

Reply
GardeningGirl9:53 pm 30 Jul 12

I took one of my often reused and now illegal bags into a store and they tried to convince me to put my purchase in a new legal thicker bag of theirs instead. I wish I could see the ban as a good first step in changing silly wasteful habits but it just seems like a token inconvenient joke. However, since this forum has a regular contributor from the Greens can I ask if there’s any more plastic they’re looking at reducing? I can think of a few examples of really silly unnecessary unreusable plastic and I’d be happy to learn that they’re looking at it and have a plan for real progress.

Reply
dpm8:58 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

….When I go to the shop to buy the groceries, I never expected to have to choose what I have to put the groceries in

HAHAHAHA! Classic comment! What a topsy world it must be for you now! The humanity! HAHAHAHA!
G, you crack me up! 🙂

Reply
Deckard8:35 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Deckard #115
The “goods” are the groceries themselves, you know, the items, the things you purchase at the shop, not the thing used to carry them? geez, don’t you get it??? Or are you just deliberately trying to twist the debate around and waste our time with nonsense arguments again……*sigh*

Yes I am trying to twist the debate. Twist it back to reality…

I’m also hoping that by continuing this debate, added to your ridiculous perverted comments on the ADFA photo scandal thread, we’ll be able to put your name on the mully cup this month.

Reply
bigfeet8:32 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

1. This is not about “entitlement”
2. Instead of me paying for my own bags, the government reimburses the shop for the more expensive, compliant bags (for Christ sake……where did I say anyone should be FINED ya dope??)

Of course it is about your sense of entitlement.

Your second point proves it.

You feel as though you are entitled to free stuff.

Well you are not.

Simple.

I’m bored now though…this is such a non-issue barely worthy of anyone even blinking about yet you get your knickers in such a knot over it.

I hope that more non-consequential things happen just so you have something to keep your mind of your misogynistic tendencies. At least it has kept you occupied for a while.

It’s been fun.

Reply
Mr Gillespie8:05 pm 30 Jul 12

Deckard #115
The “goods” are the groceries themselves, you know, the items, the things you purchase at the shop, not the thing used to carry them? geez, don’t you get it??? Or are you just deliberately trying to twist the debate around and waste our time with nonsense arguments again……*sigh*

BigFeet #116
1. This is not about “entitlement”
2. Instead of me paying for my own bags, the government reimburses the shop for the more expensive, compliant bags (for Christ sake……where did I say anyone should be FINED ya dope??)

Reply
bigfeet7:00 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

BigFeet #112

I said it was like a user-pays but not the same as a user-pays, you are taking what I say too literally, not even trying to get the gist of the argument.

Now, as for being “entitled to have products supplied for free”, there are 2 things to consider here:
1. before November 1, 2011, were we ever entitled to free shopping bags?
2. since when have I ever chosen to go shopping for the things to put articles of groceries in? Funny, because when I go to the shop to buy the groceries, I never expected to have to choose what I have to put the groceries in

Before November 1 2011 you were not entitled to free shopping bags. The stores may have chosen to give them to you for free, but you were not entitled to them.

After November 1 2012 you are still not entitled to free shopping bags. The stores may choose to give them to your for free, some do, some don’t, but you are not entitled to them.

You have never been entitled to free bags.

So really, it has nothing to do with the government. It is individual stores policies of not giving you free stuff that you have an issue with.

And as for your ‘user pays’ system, what you are saying is actually a fine system. You seem to be proposing: Bring your own bags…get fined, don’t bring bags and then ‘someone’ will give you free bags.

I thought you hated fines?

Reply
Deckard6:57 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

since when have I ever chosen to go shopping for the things to put articles of groceries in? Funny, because when I go to the shop to buy the groceries, I never expected to have to choose what I have to put the groceries in

So you want goods supplied to you for free. Commie!!

Reply
troll-sniffer6:45 pm 30 Jul 12

I didn’t read all of this thread due to the inanity of the subject and the responses on page one, but I did wonder briefly if anyone managed to bring cyclists into0 one of the comments

Reply
Mr Gillespie6:45 pm 30 Jul 12

BigFeet #112

I said it was like a user-pays but not the same as a user-pays, you are taking what I say too literally, not even trying to get the gist of the argument.

Now, as for being “entitled to have products supplied for free”, there are 2 things to consider here:
1. before November 1, 2011, were we ever entitled to free shopping bags?
2. since when have I ever chosen to go shopping for the things to put articles of groceries in? Funny, because when I go to the shop to buy the groceries, I never expected to have to choose what I have to put the groceries in

Reply
bigfeet6:30 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

No, BigFeet (109), you twisted my words around/misunderstood. User-pays means if the supporters of the bag ban want us to be forced to use alternatives, then THEY should pay for it. Why should I have to pay for their compliant bags?? Think compulsion for those that want compulsion.

Are you getting my drift yet? or do you just get off on twisting my words?

Well that is not a “user pays” system. It is the exact opposite.

And as I said earlier..why do you think you have an entitlement from any business that they should provide you with free products anyway? They have to buy the bags in the first place.

What other things do you believe you have an entitlement to be supplied for free?

Reply
Mr Gillespie6:15 pm 30 Jul 12

No, BigFeet (109), you twisted my words around/misunderstood. User-pays means if the supporters of the bag ban want us to be forced to use alternatives, then THEY should pay for it. Why should I have to pay for their compliant bags?? Think compulsion for those that want compulsion.

Are you getting my drift yet? or do you just get off on twisting my words?

Reply
Postalgeek6:14 pm 30 Jul 12

Looks like somebody put a plastic bag over their head while they were unsupervised…

Reply
bigfeet5:54 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

It’s like user-pays, a fairer go where it’s deserved.

Well that is exactly what we have.

Want to use a bag?…then you pay.

So it looks at though the current policy is exactly what you have asked for.

Reply
Mr Gillespie5:37 pm 30 Jul 12

Baldy said :

You do realise you are arguing over 15c don’t you.

I would just like to get that out in the open.

Even if it was one cent, I don’t care! — it’s the PRINCIPLE of the thing!

Reply
Mr Gillespie5:33 pm 30 Jul 12

Davo101 #102
You seem to have misinterpreted slightly, or (intentionally or unintentionally) twisted my words around. I didn’t say shops be required to supply free bags, but while I think of it, shops should be subsidised for the cost of complying with the law by paying the 15¢ or whatever instead of the customer having to pay. I believe that if the greenies want, then they should pay. Same goes for the carbon tax: supporters of the carbon tax should be the ones paying it, while those not in favour of it should not be the ones wearing the cost of something they didn’t wish for. It’s like user-pays, a fairer go where it’s deserved.

Nobody #100
When was the last time the ACT had a referendum? This issue (like the carbon tax) should have been put to a referendum, but very rarely do we have referendums, the last one from what I can remember, being for whether we have a republic, or to have some preamble in the constitution. Anyway, referendums are a very rare thing, and the next best choice is to vote Liberal (some people like to strike below the belt and bring the hospital implosion into it even though it’s past history).

Baldy #98
Sorry, but I happen to think housing really is an issue deserving priority, and I could say someone thought banning plastic bags below a certain thickness was a “priority” in the first place! so don’t play the priority card with me!

Reply
Postalgeek5:09 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

I did not bring the ban upon myself because it isn’t my choice to call for nanny-state legislation that makes decisions for us all.

You need a ‘nanny’ state to look after you, dizzy. You can’t cope with the lack of a plastic bag at a shop. Imagine how you would disintegrate if there was sudden and major deprivation in your life, if there was nothing to put into that precious little bag of yours.

No, you need a State with a firm hand on the tiller, keeping everything nice and even for you.

Reply
Baldy5:08 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Rhavinmad #98
Yeah, and I miss the time when I couldn’t get a good night’s sleep because of all the guilt I was burdened with from thinking about all those poor little sea turtles in America’s East Coast, the pelicans in Perth, and the elephants in Ethiopia getting choked up by those awful, nasty plastic bags from Canberra when I didn’t have to worry about paying for when buying the groceries.

Ceegee #94 (& others like Sandman (#89) who think I am a “selfish twat” for questioning what Canberra’s waste disposal has to do with the garbage-ridden coasts of China)
Nobody has ever forced you to choose to put your groceries in one of those nasty little plastic bags like the ones that are now banned. It is YOUR CHOICE (just as much as mine) who you vote for in this once-in-4-year democracy — but it WAS your choice whether to buy reusable bags or have your shopping in a bag you didn’t have to pay for. I did not bring the ban upon myself because it isn’t my choice to call for nanny-state legislation that makes decisions for us all.

Joy H #83 — others have suggested shops offer paper bags. Well, I am still yet to see any free bags of any sort offered at the checkout.

By the way, please enlighten me: can you tell me which is “your local IGA” and which IGA or other grocery shops don’t charge customers for bags.

PS: For your information, my issue is not about plastic bags, but about bags (paper, biodegradeable, or whatever, I don’t care) being supplied AT NO CHARGE.

So before you want to continue to mock me and joke about my alleged “obsession” with “little green bags”/plastic shopping bags, THINK: this issue all boils down to is the principle of having to pay for something to carry your shopping items in.

You do realise you are arguing over 15c don’t you.

I would just like to get that out in the open.

Reply
bigfeet4:59 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

PS: For your information, my issue is not about plastic bags, but about bags (paper, biodegradeable, or whatever, I don’t care) being supplied AT NO CHARGE..

Why stop there. Why not demand that shop supply all items AT NO CHARGE?

You have no entitlement for anything, including bags, to be given to you free.

Reply
davo1014:40 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

PS: For your information, my issue is not about plastic bags, but about bags (paper, biodegradable, or whatever, I don’t care) being supplied AT NO CHARGE.

So if I understand your argument correctly:

-Legislating a minimum standard for plastic shopping bags equals “nanny state”
-Legislating to require shop owners to give you a free shopping bag doesn’t equal “nanny state”

It would appear that “nanny state” is just a label you use for things you don’t like.

Reply
Mr Gillespie4:20 pm 30 Jul 12

Rhavinmad #98
Yeah, and I miss the time when I couldn’t get a good night’s sleep because of all the guilt I was burdened with from thinking about all those poor little sea turtles in America’s East Coast, the pelicans in Perth, and the elephants in Ethiopia getting choked up by those awful, nasty plastic bags from Canberra when I didn’t have to worry about paying for when buying the groceries.

Ceegee #94 (& others like Sandman (#89) who think I am a “selfish twat” for questioning what Canberra’s waste disposal has to do with the garbage-ridden coasts of China)
Nobody has ever forced you to choose to put your groceries in one of those nasty little plastic bags like the ones that are now banned. It is YOUR CHOICE (just as much as mine) who you vote for in this once-in-4-year democracy — but it WAS your choice whether to buy reusable bags or have your shopping in a bag you didn’t have to pay for. I did not bring the ban upon myself because it isn’t my choice to call for nanny-state legislation that makes decisions for us all.

Joy H #83 — others have suggested shops offer paper bags. Well, I am still yet to see any free bags of any sort offered at the checkout.

By the way, please enlighten me: can you tell me which is “your local IGA” and which IGA or other grocery shops don’t charge customers for bags.

PS: For your information, my issue is not about plastic bags, but about bags (paper, biodegradeable, or whatever, I don’t care) being supplied AT NO CHARGE.

So before you want to continue to mock me and joke about my alleged “obsession” with “little green bags”/plastic shopping bags, THINK: this issue all boils down to is the principle of having to pay for something to carry your shopping items in.

Reply
nobody4:08 pm 30 Jul 12

So, tell me more about my voting options in October, which party has a policy to overturn this improvement? Has any party made a statement against the improvement since the change, or are you just talking a load of rubbish?

Reply
rhavinmad3:29 pm 30 Jul 12

I miss being able to watch plastic bags float with the wind, knowing that at some point in its journey, it will become food for a Turtle or a toy for a Dolphin!!!

Reply
Baldy1:50 pm 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

leneuromancer said :

sentinel said :

The shopping bag ban is retarded policy … the only thing the ban does is to inconvenience the consumer whilst giving the largest retailers the opportunity to charge for shopping bags

I’ve been a silent reader for about 12 months – but this one has finally cracked me! …such strong words for such a non-issue: retarded, injustice, inconvenience

Seems to me the majority has spoken on this issue (ok, so only in this forum), and you (and the OP), have been seriously left wanting

I for one could not care less if the ban was overturned – because, regardless, I will continue take my re-usable, recyclable, hippy, government mandated, inserted-your-retarded-euphemism-here, bag with me …and I am confident most others will too!

As for an election/voting issue? wow… it must be nice to have so little to worry about!

Let’s face it, the only retarded, inconvenient injustice around this issue is that we all wasted our time reading and responding …even if good for a laugh!

Why is it such a “non-issue” that you have to bring your own shopping bags and if they’re full up, you have to BUY extra bags?

You are an example of APATHY and the “majority” who now seem to support this ridiculous “trivial”, so-called “unimportant” issue are the reason why the likes of Simon Corbell can just walk all over us and ban whatever they want so long as it’s trivial enough to be ignored by the likes of you, and gets away with it.

Interestin comment from someone who in another thread called the equality issue of Same -Sex marriage trival and we should concentrate on housing instead.

Reply
astrojax1:34 pm 30 Jul 12

hrrmmph, you’ve all got so much money you can go shopping. we used to have to steal shoe boxes from middle of’t road and eat them.

hey jb, can we have a new ‘mully-like’ award for the most puerile posts of the month? mebbe a stuffed hessian bag would do just dandy – we could inscribe the winner’s name in henna.

Reply
Kurrajong12:03 pm 30 Jul 12

Simple solution: ACT Govt insists shops provide free biodegradable bags.

Any ideas on how to make this an election issue? A face book page? A mail campaign to the legislative incumbents and aspirants? Any takers?

BTW, my cost for dropping into Jerra Woolies is nothing really as it’s a by product of visiting family. For us, Jerra Woolies provides the perfect cheap solution.

Reply
devils_advocate11:01 am 30 Jul 12

PantsMan said :

I would support tanks on the streets on this issue.

A casual examination of the footage of “tank man” (of tianimen square fame) shows he is holding a plastic shopping bag in each hand.

Since that footage was smuggled out of china (in some fairly improbable circumstances) speculation has raged as to what prompted tank man to stand up to the government in such a symbolic and dangerous manner.

I think we can safely say, that speculation is now at an end.

Reply
cegee10:26 am 30 Jul 12

i think the bag ban is a good thing and will vote accordingly. so get stuffed.

Reply
VYBerlinaV8_is_back10:00 am 30 Jul 12

milkman said :

Deckard said :

The old righties v lefties debate…

The righties think they get shouted down by the lefties and get a hard time of it while the lefties think they get shouted down by the righties and get a hard time of it.

Good point.

Deckard said :

I think to be classified as a lefty or a righty you need to believe that the world is against you.

Not so sure about this. There are plenty of people who identify with one side or another who are still fairly normal.

Most of the posts on here are still fairly lefty, though, which is not surprising.

It’s a fairly lefty site. But hey, that’s ok, if you don’t like it don’t visit it.

Reply
davo1019:30 am 30 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

Why should I have to BUY the bags when they can be given for free (unless Simon Corbell and Caroline Le Coulter object)?

Because the businesses you choose to patronise have made the choice to start changing you for a bag. There is nothing in the act that requires the business to charge you for a bag, they have made the conscious decision to do that. If you don’t like that take your patronage to one of the IGAs that have chosen not to charge for bags.

Reply
Pity8:44 am 30 Jul 12

All plastic bags sold in ACT should be biodegradable.

That’s what should be legislated.

Reply
milkman7:17 am 30 Jul 12

Deckard said :

The old righties v lefties debate…

The righties think they get shouted down by the lefties and get a hard time of it while the lefties think they get shouted down by the righties and get a hard time of it.

Good point.

Deckard said :

I think to be classified as a lefty or a righty you need to believe that the world is against you.

Not so sure about this. There are plenty of people who identify with one side or another who are still fairly normal.

Most of the posts on here are still fairly lefty, though, which is not surprising.

Reply
Sandman10:37 pm 29 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

you were perfectly welcome to bring your own bags even long before this legislation was brought into force. But that was YOUR CHOICE, and not mine!!

And YOUR CHOICE along with the choices of other selfish twats is the reason they introduced a law. Don’t blame those who were being a bit more responsible beforehand. You brought the ban upon yourself.

Reply
Deckard9:39 pm 29 Jul 12

milkman said :

It’s not really surprising that such views are in the minority here, given that any right wing views get shouted down and the person making the comment ridiculed.

The old righties v lefties debate…

The righties think they get shouted down by the lefties and get a hard time of it while the lefties think they get shouted down by the righties and get a hard time of it.

I think to be classified as a lefty or a righty you need to believe that the world is against you.

Reply
milkman6:51 pm 29 Jul 12

dpm said :

Mr Gillespie said :

Greens-supporters, what the hell do the rubbish-carpeted shores of China have to do with the smallest (and landlocked) jurisdiction of our wide brown land??

Hmmm, Mr G and Henry agree on in issue – makes sense really…. Hahahaha! You two should get a room! Hahahaha!

It’s not really surprising that such views are in the minority here, given that any right wing views get shouted down and the person making the comment ridiculed.

Reply
Antagonist6:33 pm 29 Jul 12

Masquara said :

I just pay 20c or 30c a shop for bags – no probs.

I bought a carton of baggies from these guys. http://www.qispackaging.com.au/Product/singlet-carry-bags

It works out to less than $0.04 per bag and I have enough to last me for YEARS and they can also be re-used. In the long-run I will save money over buying 72 re-usable bags @ $1 each … the same bags that become useless as soon as they become dirty from leaking milk, meat juice, cleaning productes etc. And I have a massive supply of bags for rubbish, soiled nappies etc etc.

Reply
jayskette6:20 pm 29 Jul 12

are you the one who always buy the giant boxes of condoms and complain you can’t fit in your pocket so must have a plastic bag?!

Reply
dpm4:05 pm 29 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Greens-supporters, what the hell do the rubbish-carpeted shores of China have to do with the smallest (and landlocked) jurisdiction of our wide brown land??

Hmmm, Mr G and Henry agree on in issue – makes sense really…. Hahahaha! You two should get a room! Hahahaha!

Reply
Joy_H3:54 pm 29 Jul 12

Hard to believe myself but after years of ready the plastic bag issue has triggered to me to register so as to comment.

#1 I know it sounds dumb but I am not going to vote for the greens again simply cause I have to carry by hand my hot container of vindaloo back to the office, would be good if there were a way to differentiate between shopping backs and little bags for carrying takeaway
# Why not force shops to provide paper sacks

Reply
Woody Mann-Caruso10:41 am 29 Jul 12

I can’t tell if you’re being serious. Stores can still give you plastic bags for free. They just need to meet certain requirements – requirements that mean the environment doesn’t have to suffer as a result of corporate convenience. They just choose not to. Surprise surprise – faced with the prospects of being forced to shoulder the costs of their own negative environmental externalities, retailers have either walked away or passed the costs to you.

Now, if you happen to believe that there’s nothing wrong with Canberrans chucking tens of thousands of non-biodegradable bags to landfill every week, then you’re a muppet and I can’t help you.

Reply
bundah10:05 am 29 Jul 12

HenryBG said :

Feng said :

Hmm, that’s a bit racist. China despite its political system is an important player on the world stage and in general, plays a role in supporting and fueling world growth. It also acts as a counter balance to other worlds powers whether you believe it or not. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

China is a totalitarian state which uses its political prisoners as unwilling organ donors; locks people up to squeeze money from; and is responsible for an extremely high and all-pervasive level of computer hacking and espionage across all levels of government, commercial and private computer system in Australia.

If you’ve ever sailed along the China coast within 50km of the mouths of any one of their great rivers, you will have witnessed a virtually solid carpet of plastic and other garbage being discharged into the sea, 24/7, and plainly visible even when well out of sight of the land.

You won’t catch the Greens being critical of their Red Comrades, though, oh no! Their new agenda is Control through over-legislation.

This is where all that plastic ends up…..shocking and destructive not unlike humanity!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxNqzAHGXvs&feature=related

Reply
miz9:59 am 29 Jul 12

I agree with Kurrajong – it’s a pointless, tokenistic policy that just means we are now paying for something we didn’t pay for before.
I too curse the Greens every time I go shopping.

Reply
Feng9:51 am 29 Jul 12

HenryBG said :

Feng said :

Hmm, that’s a bit racist. China despite its political system is an important player on the world stage and in general, plays a role in supporting and fueling world growth. It also acts as a counter balance to other worlds powers whether you believe it or not. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

China is a totalitarian state which uses its political prisoners as unwilling organ donors; locks people up to squeeze money from; and is responsible for an extremely high and all-pervasive level of computer hacking and espionage across all levels of government, commercial and private computer system in Australia.

If you’ve ever sailed along the China coast within 50km of the mouths of any one of their great rivers, you will have witnessed a virtually solid carpet of plastic and other garbage being discharged into the sea, 24/7, and plainly visible even when well out of sight of the land.

You won’t catch the Greens being critical of their Red Comrades, though, oh no! Their new agenda is Control through over-legislation.

That may be, but still doesn’t justify your broad racist attack on all third world countries such as Indonesia and Thailand. Besides, if you hate China that much, I dare you to have nothing to do with the country hmmm? That means clothing, food, businesses that deal with the country and oh the government too.

Reply
Instant Mash8:34 am 29 Jul 12

I must say that I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a big fuss over something so small and trivial.

Now I’m looking forward to NSW getting on board.

Reply
Mr Gillespie7:15 am 29 Jul 12

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

Why is it such a “non-issue” that you have to bring your own shopping bags and if they’re full up, you have to BUY extra bags?

…..You go to the shop. You don’t have any bags. You buy some. You go back the next week. You don’t have enough. Maybe last shop was on the small side. That’s understandable. You buy more. People with a functioning brain stem would have enough by now. Buy ten. It’s less than $2. Now you’re set for bags for ages…..

That’s the thing you see. Why should I have to BUY the bags when they can be given for free (unless Simon Corbell and Caroline Le Coulter object)? Why the hell should I have my choice not to (a) pay for bags or (b) “BYO” forced upon me I mean if it feels right for you, you were perfectly welcome to bring your own bags even long before this legislation was brought into force. But that was YOUR CHOICE, and not mine!!

Greens-supporters, what the hell do the rubbish-carpeted shores of China have to do with the smallest (and landlocked) jurisdiction of our wide brown land??

Reply
Woody Mann-Caruso9:11 pm 28 Jul 12

Why is it such a “non-issue” that you have to bring your own shopping bags and if they’re full up, you have to BUY extra bags?

Step us through what it’s like to be you, Gillespie. Help me to get inside the head of somebody who seems to stumble so badly dealing with something so simple.

You go to the shop. You don’t have any bags. You buy some. You go back the next week. You don’t have enough. Maybe last shop was on the small side. That’s understandable. You buy more. People with a functioning brain stem would have enough by now. Buy ten. It’s less than $2. Now you’re set for bags for ages.

Maybe you’ll forget from time to time. Either the cost stings, and you forget less often, or you forget all the time, and you pay the idiot tax, like a library fine. Or maybe you make a rational economic decision that it’s not worth moving them from the car to the house and back to the car again. Buy bags every time, and throw them out. Chances are something is on special you weren’t expecting to be on special anyway, so it all evens out.

Either way, it’s really, really easy.

For everybody except you, it seems.

So why is it so different for you?

Reply
simsim8:59 pm 28 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Deref, perhaps I don’t agree with the Labor/Greens philosophy that puts imagined/overblown environmental “concerns” before the PEOPLE affected by useless trivial bits of legislation.

The apathetic attitude of a lot of people (such as yours) is why the Labor/Green Government is getting away with feel-good measures “in the name of the environment” being imposed on the entire population whose individual choices (such as whether to bring your own bag or not pay for bags) are being DENIED.

Mr Gillespie, you absolutely have the individual choice. You can bring your own bag, or you can pay for a bag, or you can go to a place where quality bags are given to customers at no charge (like, say, my local IGA). What you can’t do is get given low-quality bags for free by multinationals…

Reply
HenryBG6:35 pm 28 Jul 12

Feng said :

Hmm, that’s a bit racist. China despite its political system is an important player on the world stage and in general, plays a role in supporting and fueling world growth. It also acts as a counter balance to other worlds powers whether you believe it or not. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

China is a totalitarian state which uses its political prisoners as unwilling organ donors; locks people up to squeeze money from; and is responsible for an extremely high and all-pervasive level of computer hacking and espionage across all levels of government, commercial and private computer system in Australia.

If you’ve ever sailed along the China coast within 50km of the mouths of any one of their great rivers, you will have witnessed a virtually solid carpet of plastic and other garbage being discharged into the sea, 24/7, and plainly visible even when well out of sight of the land.

You won’t catch the Greens being critical of their Red Comrades, though, oh no! Their new agenda is Control through over-legislation.

Reply
Deref4:16 pm 28 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Deref, perhaps I don’t agree with the Labor/Greens philosophy that puts imagined/overblown environmental “concerns” before the PEOPLE affected by useless trivial bits of legislation.

The apathetic attitude of a lot of people (such as yours) is why the Labor/Green Government is getting away with feel-good measures “in the name of the environment” being imposed on the entire population whose individual choices (such as whether to bring your own bag or not pay for bags) are being DENIED.

You misinterpret me, Mr G. I’m as inconvenienced by the ban as you (i.e. a bit) and I’m not convinced that many plastic bags from Canberra escape into the environment other than as wrappers for garbage that goes to the tip. Regardless, I think there are better ways – I’d have much preferred them to require that the bags be biodegradable, for example.

And apathetic? Moi? I’m politically and financially active in areas that I think are important and my voting decisions will be based on more important things than whether I have to pay a few cents for my bin liners. I suggest that yours should be too.

Reply
vaguely1:44 pm 28 Jul 12

Shop at a store that absorbs the cost of the plastic bag, or pay the 10c for the bag.
Either way, you will pay for the bag in the long run

Nothing has changed here, except you can no longer get the ‘too thin to be (re)used’ bags from Woolies

If this is what Canberrans vote on I can see why an elected official can blow up a building and kill someone and get re-elected.

Just think yourself lucky you don’t have to deal with concrete pours in this city…

Reply
Mr Gillespie1:22 pm 28 Jul 12

Deref, perhaps I don’t agree with the Labor/Greens philosophy that puts imagined/overblown environmental “concerns” before the PEOPLE affected by useless trivial bits of legislation.

The apathetic attitude of a lot of people (such as yours) is why the Labor/Green Government is getting away with feel-good measures “in the name of the environment” being imposed on the entire population whose individual choices (such as whether to bring your own bag or not pay for bags) are being DENIED.

Reply
grunge_hippy1:02 pm 28 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

grunge_hippy said :

easy: shop in QBN.

Sorry, but that’s only a band-aid solution, and doesn’t suit those who live in far-flung suburbs like Belconnen, Gungahlin or Tuggeranong.

far flung? are you kidding? I live in tuggers, if we need bag, we drive 15 WHOLE MINUTES to qbn.

Reply
Masquara12:49 pm 28 Jul 12

I just pay 20c or 30c a shop for bags – no probs.

Reply
Deref11:49 am 28 Jul 12

If the most important factor in your voting decision is the plastic bag ban, then either:

* things in your world are so perfect that the most minor of inconveniences is the only thing that matters;

* you’re so incredibly shallow that free plastic bags are the most important thing in your life; or

* you have an obsessive psychiatric condition.

Have I missed anything?

Reply
Mr Gillespie11:04 am 28 Jul 12

grunge_hippy said :

easy: shop in QBN.

Sorry, but that’s only a band-aid solution, and doesn’t suit those who live in far-flung suburbs like Belconnen, Gungahlin or Tuggeranong.

Reply
TheDancingDjinn11:03 am 28 Jul 12

They still have plastic bags, they are green now. And the ladies at kip pax woollies have never ever charged me for them. Suck it up

Reply
Feng10:42 am 28 Jul 12

HenryBG said :

enrique said :

Are you kidding?! Build a bridge and get over it.

FYI…

http://www.unep.org/themes/consumption/pdf/The_Dangers_of_Plastic_Bags.pdf
http://www.cleanup.org.au/PDF/au/cua_plastic_bags_fact_sheet.pdf
http://plasticbags.planetark.org/
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/index.html
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/challenge.html

What a load of crap.
My plastic shopping bags are filled with rubbish and end up at the tip, in landfill.
If you’ve got problems with the people who feed plastic bags to sea turtles and whatnot, take it up with them as it has zero to do with me.

If you’ve ever visited Indonesia, Thailand, China and whatnot, you’ll know exactly where all the plastic bags come from that end up in the sea: disorganised 3rd-world $#!%holes. A program to drastically reduce their rate of breeding would provide enormous environmental benefits.

Hmm, that’s a bit racist. China despite its political system is an important player on the world stage and in general, plays a role in supporting and fueling world growth. It also acts as a counter balance to other worlds powers whether you believe it or not. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

It’s not perfect for a country that size, it is improving.

Besides, it has a population control policy so goes to show your level of ignorance.

But I’ve reported your comment for racism, being negative and empty.

Reply
grunge_hippy10:08 am 28 Jul 12

easy: shop in QBN.

Reply
simsim9:22 am 28 Jul 12

The thing is, there isn’t actually a plastic bag ban. Because shops give out shopping bags all the time (our local IGA does it for free with every purchase).

The difference is, there’s minimum quality standards for plastic bags. They can’t be the low-quality “almost falling to bits” bags that Coles and Woolworths got away with offering shoppers for decades. They have to be rugged and re-usable.

Coles and Woolworths have decided that they don’t want to absorb the cost of the plastic bags, but would rather pass it on to consumers.

Our Local IGA decided they would absorb it.

People looking to overturn the legislation are really sticking up for low-quality crappy plastic bags and the large companies that think they can get away with offering consumers inferior products. Apparently, there are a lot of big fans of inferior products out there…

Reply
patrick_keogh8:58 am 28 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

You are an example of APATHY and the “majority” who now seem to support this ridiculous “trivial”, so-called “unimportant” issue are the reason why the likes of Simon Corbell can just walk all over us and ban whatever they want so long as it’s trivial enough to be ignored by the likes of you, and gets away with it.

No apathy. I started bringing my own bags years before the ban came in. It is no inconvenience to me. I am part of the majority (note the lack of quotes) who support (not seem to support) this measure. I use excess packaging (the little clear plastic boxes that some things come in for example) or waste paper to hold any messy waste. Under the kitchen sink is a washable plastic tub which is used to transport the garbage to the green bin outside. Not much messy waste anyway as all vegetable waste gets composted.

The point is that I am not special. This or something similar is what a large proportion of Canberra homes are doing. The thoughtless and selfish are a dying breed.

Reply
Mr Gillespie8:31 am 28 Jul 12

leneuromancer said :

sentinel said :

The shopping bag ban is retarded policy … the only thing the ban does is to inconvenience the consumer whilst giving the largest retailers the opportunity to charge for shopping bags

I’ve been a silent reader for about 12 months – but this one has finally cracked me! …such strong words for such a non-issue: retarded, injustice, inconvenience

Seems to me the majority has spoken on this issue (ok, so only in this forum), and you (and the OP), have been seriously left wanting

I for one could not care less if the ban was overturned – because, regardless, I will continue take my re-usable, recyclable, hippy, government mandated, inserted-your-retarded-euphemism-here, bag with me …and I am confident most others will too!

As for an election/voting issue? wow… it must be nice to have so little to worry about!

Let’s face it, the only retarded, inconvenient injustice around this issue is that we all wasted our time reading and responding …even if good for a laugh!

Why is it such a “non-issue” that you have to bring your own shopping bags and if they’re full up, you have to BUY extra bags?

You are an example of APATHY and the “majority” who now seem to support this ridiculous “trivial”, so-called “unimportant” issue are the reason why the likes of Simon Corbell can just walk all over us and ban whatever they want so long as it’s trivial enough to be ignored by the likes of you, and gets away with it.

Reply
Jethro11:55 pm 27 Jul 12

The more important question is will the Libs unban fireworks?

I believe that at some stage they said they would.

Reply
leneuromancer10:36 pm 27 Jul 12

sentinel said :

The shopping bag ban is retarded policy … the only thing the ban does is to inconvenience the consumer whilst giving the largest retailers the opportunity to charge for shopping bags

I’ve been a silent reader for about 12 months – but this one has finally cracked me! …such strong words for such a non-issue: retarded, injustice, inconvenience

Seems to me the majority has spoken on this issue (ok, so only in this forum), and you (and the OP), have been seriously left wanting

I for one could not care less if the ban was overturned – because, regardless, I will continue take my re-usable, recyclable, hippy, government mandated, inserted-your-retarded-euphemism-here, bag with me …and I am confident most others will too!

As for an election/voting issue? wow… it must be nice to have so little to worry about!

Let’s face it, the only retarded, inconvenient injustice around this issue is that we all wasted our time reading and responding …even if good for a laugh!

Reply
LegalNut10:34 pm 27 Jul 12

sentinel said :

The shopping bag ban is retarded policy, a prime example of the Labour party giving in to the whims of the ACT greens. Fortunately the other states don;t have to deal with the “lunatic fringe” and haven’t implemented such ridiculous policy .

That’s funny. Put a slightly different tilt on things and the Liberals become a “lunatic fringe”. You might not like the Greens but a significant proportion of the ACT population supports them and believes their policies to be a better path forward. The fact is that, like it or not, the Greens are no longer a fringe political movement and their positions are no more in the realm of lunacy than those of the Liberals or Labor.

Reply
EvanJames10:13 pm 27 Jul 12

Just wait for when Mr Gillespie finds out the ACT Government’s plans to limit supplies of tinfoil… Prescription only.

Reply
sentinel9:40 pm 27 Jul 12

The shopping bag ban is retarded policy, a prime example of the Labour party giving in to the whims of the ACT greens. Fortunately the other states don;t have to deal with the “lunatic fringe” and haven’t implemented such ridiculous policy .About the only thing the ban does is to inconvenience the consumer whilst giving the largest retailers the opportunity to charge for shopping bags ( nice little earner there !!!). Interesting too that non supermarket retailers still provide plastic bags – eg at DFO, buying clothes.
I hope it’s overturned.

Reply
Androyd9:29 pm 27 Jul 12

Does anyone else remember the David Pope cartoon in the CT with the Random Bag Testing police patrol stopping cars coming back over the border from Qbn? “Geez Sarge, he’S even bagged the toilet paper!” “Um, we’d just run out of bin liners, so we thought…” “Save it for the judge, turtle killer.”

Classic…

Reply
enrique8:09 pm 27 Jul 12

Mrs_Potato_Head said :

HenryBG said :

enrique said :

Are you kidding?! Build a bridge and get over it.

FYI…

http://www.unep.org/themes/consumption/pdf/The_Dangers_of_Plastic_Bags.pdf
http://www.cleanup.org.au/PDF/au/cua_plastic_bags_fact_sheet.pdf
http://plasticbags.planetark.org/
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/index.html
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/challenge.html

What a load of crap.
My plastic shopping bags are filled with rubbish and end up at the tip, in landfill.
If you’ve got problems with the people who feed plastic bags to sea turtles and whatnot, take it up with them as it has zero to do with me.

If you’ve ever visited Indonesia, Thailand, China and whatnot, you’ll know exactly where all the plastic bags come from that end up in the sea: disorganised 3rd-world $#!%holes. A program to drastically reduce their rate of breeding would provide enormous environmental benefits.

OH MY GOD!!!

I know! Can you believe there are people like this?!

Reply
Aeek8:07 pm 27 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Yes, and how many sea turtles would you find within cooee of the landlocked ACT?

but there are platypus to be drowned by plastic bags. And what about Mr Gillespies?

Reply
Motoristparty8:01 pm 27 Jul 12

Please read the Australian Motorist Party policy on plastic bags.
Posted by Burl Doble

Plastic bag legislation improvements

We find the legislation by A.C.T. Greens and Labor to ban plastic shopping bags has actually added to the amount of plastic dumped in landfill while adding inconvenience to shoppers. They say it is, used plastic shopping bags ending up in landfill that are the concern.

A huge percentage of the originally distributed plastic bags were used a second time as bin liners etc. When these bags were banned consumers were forced to buy plastic bin liner bags to replace them and these as we know are of a much heavier plastic which instead lead to a higher volume of plastic going into landfill. The plastic bags which you buy at the checkout now are of a much heavier plastic than the original bags.

Can you imagine the hundreds of thousands of the also currently used so called cloth bags that will be discarded when they are stained by leaking food stuffs, torn or simply worn out taking their dyes and printing ink into the subsoil. These bags are actually polypropylene a plastic which is less desirable than the banned bags.

It is our policy to change this legislation so instead of shop keepers selling you the thicker plastic bags they will only to be able to distribute biodegradable shopping bags. Again these bags will be used a second time as bin liners before being dumped and decomposing in landfill. The need for the dedicated bin liners will be reduced and we will see and actual reduction in non biodegradable plastic dumped in landfill as was the reason .

Reply
Antagonist7:36 pm 27 Jul 12

zippyzippy said :

Mr Gillespie said :

Yes, and how many sea turtles would you find within cooee of the landlocked ACT?

I’ve seen plastic bags in ponds around Canberra and in the creeks. Are there any turtles in those?

None that feed on jellyfish. Therefore they are much less likely to get themselves entangled through mistaken identity.

Reply
LegalNut7:14 pm 27 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

The reason this issue does matter is so obvious even Blind Freddy can see it. You only have to go down to the local supermarket. Noticed all the empty bag racks at Coles and Woolworths, while in NSW and other states customers can get on with their groceries instead of choosing what bag to BUY to put their groceries in.

Why is it that you have your head firmly stuck in the sand and taking such an apathetic approach? Do you LIKE having to buy your own bags now? Do you really enjoy bringing your own fancy bag to carry your groceries in?

The fact that I have to buy a plastic bag is not an onerous impost that makes my daily life unbearable. In fact, it is a salient reminder for me to consider whether I really need that piece of refined hydrocarbon.

The bottom line for me is that I don’t actually have a problem with government regulation in these sorts of areas. While it may be annoying, there is a real benefit in terms of reducing the volume of waste created by our society and in ensuring that we understand the true cost of the things we use.

In any case, repealing the ban is hardly going to result in the supermarkets actually bringing back free bags. The City of Toronto recently overturned their ban and all the supermarkets are still charging the 5c per bag that they no longer have to charge. There’s a simple reason for that – it is responsible and it makes sense.

Reply
Madam Cholet6:50 pm 27 Jul 12

I think if you plunder the Hansard records far back enough Vicki Dunne is on the record supporting a similar move – a levy on bags to see if it reduces the usage. Just google her name and plastic bags it’s easy enough to find. From memory it was voted down by Labor. So even though it was pre Zed, it would be a bit rih to over turn the current ban unless it was for another scheme.

Reply
chris8206:32 pm 27 Jul 12

My local kwik-e-mart has gotten around the ban on giving out non-biodegradable polyethylene bag less than 35 microns thick, by now giving out non-biodegradable polyethylene bag greater than 35 microns thick.

Reply
Instant Mash6:25 pm 27 Jul 12

I highly doubt it, considering we’re just the first step in it being rolled out nationally.

As somebody who works in customer service, the only downside I see to the ban are the people who will still put up a fight over having to pay 10c (daily) and the people who “refuse to pay for a PLASTIC bag”, yet continue complaining about it until after they have left the store.

I’m as forgetful as the next guy when it comes to remembering to bring a bag, but I really don’t mind having to pay. And I’m certainly not gonna give the cashier an earful over MY problem, because they have better things to do.

Reply
Mr Gillespie5:44 pm 27 Jul 12

PrinceOfAles said :

To answer Mr Gillespies original question “can the plastic shopping bag ban be overturned?” you would need a liberal majority government and that isn`t going to happen at this election. So I guess the short answer is no. You should focus your energy into things that actually matter.

The reason this issue does matter is so obvious even Blind Freddy can see it. You only have to go down to the local supermarket. Noticed all the empty bag racks at Coles and Woolworths, while in NSW and other states customers can get on with their groceries instead of choosing what bag to BUY to put their groceries in.

Why is it that you have your head firmly stuck in the sand and taking such an apathetic approach? Do you LIKE having to buy your own bags now? Do you really enjoy bringing your own fancy bag to carry your groceries in?

Reply
zippyzippy5:24 pm 27 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Yes, and how many sea turtles would you find within cooee of the landlocked ACT?

I’ve seen plastic bags in ponds around Canberra and in the creeks. Are there any turtles in those?

Reply
switch5:22 pm 27 Jul 12

Kurrajong said :

If ever stopped at the border, I’ll point to Section 92 of the Constitution that allows free trade between states!

I know Section 92 was used with devastating effect to destroy the railways in this country many years ago. But does it apply to a territory border such as the ACT’s?

Reply
PantsMan5:03 pm 27 Jul 12

Kurrajong said :

PS: Our plastic bag solution is to occasionally shop at Jerrabomberra Woolies across the border and come away with many weeks supply of plastic bags. If ever stopped at the border, I’ll point to Section 92 of the Constitution that allows free trade between states!

Not to mention an unconsitutional excise on the production and distribution of goods (section 90, Capital Duplicators (No 1)), an aqusition of property other than on just terms (51 something), and third line forcing under the National Consumer Law 2010.

Reply
PrinceOfAles5:02 pm 27 Jul 12

To answer Mr Gillespies original question “can the plastic shopping bag ban be overturned?” you would need a liberal majority government and that isn`t going to happen at this election. So I guess the short answer is no. You should focus your energy into things that actually matter.

Reply
AAMC5:01 pm 27 Jul 12

Well it is official Riot act readers have snapped; this is a more impressive tirade than the Kangaroo cull threads.

Reply
Sandman5:00 pm 27 Jul 12

I love the ban. No longer do I have a prime piece of kitchen cupboard real estate overflowing with hundreds of plastic bags that fall out every time the door gets opened.
No longer am I forced to try and squeeze an ill fitting bag over a bin too large.
No longer does the bottom of the ill fitting bag split while removing because of the kebab skewer poking into the bottom.
No longer do I have to struggle tying the too short handles on an overfull garbage bag that wasn’t actually designed to be a garbage bag.

I now enjoy nicely scented , properly fitting , easily securable garbage bags which cost bugger all.

Reply
davo1014:53 pm 27 Jul 12

Kurrajong said :

PS: Our plastic bag solution is to occasionally shop at Jerrabomberra Woolies across the border and come away with many weeks supply of plastic bags. If ever stopped at the border, I’ll point to Section 92 of the Constitution that allows free trade between states!

Please tell me you’re kidding right? A quick google tells me bin liners are about 5c each so if you get 20 when you go to Jerra that’s a whole $1, how far can you drive your car for a dollar?

Reply
Pork Hunt4:46 pm 27 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Yes, and how many sea turtles would you find within cooee of the landlocked ACT?

What about Jervis Bay?

Reply
shirty_bear4:37 pm 27 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

Yes, and how many sea turtles would you find within cooee of the landlocked ACT?

duhhh … this is why we also have Jervis Bay. Sea turtles for everyone!

Reply
Mr Gillespie4:29 pm 27 Jul 12

Yes, and how many sea turtles would you find within cooee of the landlocked ACT?

Reply
screaming banshee4:26 pm 27 Jul 12

Stuart is just upset that now he has to pay for the bags he needs to ‘meet’ women.

Reply
nsn4:21 pm 27 Jul 12

Jungle Jim said :

I know I’m not helping by posting this, but I can’t believe 23 people before me even bothered responding to this idiotic thread.

In my defence, my post at #20 was off-topic. Just like this one.

Reply
VYBerlinaV8_is_back4:06 pm 27 Jul 12

I think I should point out that sea turtles consider plastic bags sticking out their mouths to be ‘bling’.

Reply
Kurrajong4:04 pm 27 Jul 12

Let’s get rid of this stupid and extremely inconvenient policy and then move on.

I curse the ACT Green’s every time I go shopping and have to waste my time returning to my car to retrieve my ‘green’ bags which I have invariably forgotten.

As trivial as this policy may seem, this bag policy is based on idealism and no precise social benefit.

PS: Our plastic bag solution is to occasionally shop at Jerrabomberra Woolies across the border and come away with many weeks supply of plastic bags. If ever stopped at the border, I’ll point to Section 92 of the Constitution that allows free trade between states!

Reply
p14:04 pm 27 Jul 12

PantsMan said :

I would support tanks on the streets on this issue.

The guy in the famous photo was holding plastic bags when he stared down a row of tanks in Tiananmen Square.

It is not a coincidence.

Reply
davo1013:58 pm 27 Jul 12

Mr Gillespie said :

This issue is about undue Government interference and excessive bureaucracy, not saving the planet.

There are literally tens if not hundreds of thousands of rules telling you what you can and can’t do ranging from the constitution through to the Australian Standard for hot-water bottles and the one that you choose to draw the line at is the standard for what type of shopping bag you can give customers?! You must of had a really scaring experience did the nasty people in the queue behind you laugh when you forgot your bag?

Reply
Snarky3:42 pm 27 Jul 12

I won’t be altering my vote because of an issue of such slight inconvenience to myself yet such a large benefit to my environment.

However I DO applaud Mr G for at least trying to effect a social/political change on a subject that apparently interests him. The streams of alternating idiocy and barely disguised self-interest that gush from all parties make me despair and want to just shut the damn door on it all… which in no way fixes the problem.

So, for all that I will never, ever vote for an proposal Mr G nominates, thank you at least for not quitting. We could use ten thousand more people like you (but with sensible ideas).

Reply
Jungle Jim3:26 pm 27 Jul 12

I know I’m not helping by posting this, but I can’t believe 23 people before me even bothered responding to this idiotic thread.

Reply
SnapperJack3:24 pm 27 Jul 12

I opposed the plastic bag ban in the early days because we used the bags as liners for the kitchen tidy. Since the ban we’ve bought boxes of bags from Costco which are far more convenient, fit onto the kitchen tidy much better and are bigger. This has been a boon because previously we had to try and get other bigger bags – which were quite rare – for the WPB in my bedroom and thus we had to stockpile two separate piles of bags. Now we can use the same bags from Costco for all the bins in the house.

As for buying groceries, it is a bit of a hassle having to pre-plan grocery shopping trips and take a green bag with you from the car to the supermarket in advance whereas previously you could just walk into the supermarket on the spur of the moment when you were in the shopping centre. But that is – as they say – a first world problem.

Overall the plastic ban bag isn’t such a problem and I can’t see the issue swaying the election or causing anybody to change their vote. Especially since Zed and the Libs refuse to commit themselves to overturning the ban.

Reply
Mr Gillespie3:17 pm 27 Jul 12

To those (eg. Enrique #2) trying to make us feel guilty about what effects plastic bags (less than 35µm thick) are supposed to have on the environment, please THINK outside the environment box for a second will you? This issue is about undue Government interference and excessive bureaucracy, not saving the planet. The ACT is a SMALL jurisdiction and is a bit too far away from the coast to contribute to the massive garbage gyros in the wide open ocean. Can’t you see that?

Just for your information in case you think I am trolling (like in other threads, RCH demolition, ADFA scandal), I am damned well serious on this issue. This is an issue I take seriously, and I make no apologies for that.

Gantz (#1), please enlighten me, how in the hell does trying to undo a useless piece of stupid legislation about shopping bags, make me a SCUMBAG??

As for me “getting over it”, are you suggesting we just let them stick the camel’s nose in the tent, because once they set a precedence, what other stupid measures are they going to put in place and expect us to “get over it”?

Reply
shirty_bear3:09 pm 27 Jul 12

HenryBG said :

If you’ve ever visited Indonesia, Thailand, China and whatnot, you’ll know exactly where all the plastic bags come from that end up in the sea: disorganised 3rd-world $#!%holes. A program to drastically reduce their rate of breeding would provide enormous environmental benefits.

Inelegantly put, but I agree that – on the world stage – we’re not the problem. But I can also see the argument that – in general – if the 1st world can’t get it right, why should the 3rd?

Mrs_Potato_Head said :

I suggest you do your shopping in Queanbeyan and get your free plastic bags there.

I get the opposite problem there … whenever I shop in Qbn, I whip the bag out of my pocket while the checkout chick is loading my gear into a bag. Then I say mumblefvck mumblefvck, and she looks at me like I’m a tool :-\

Reply
Mrs_Potato_Head2:48 pm 27 Jul 12

HenryBG said :

enrique said :

Are you kidding?! Build a bridge and get over it.

FYI…

http://www.unep.org/themes/consumption/pdf/The_Dangers_of_Plastic_Bags.pdf
http://www.cleanup.org.au/PDF/au/cua_plastic_bags_fact_sheet.pdf
http://plasticbags.planetark.org/
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/index.html
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/challenge.html

What a load of crap.
My plastic shopping bags are filled with rubbish and end up at the tip, in landfill.
If you’ve got problems with the people who feed plastic bags to sea turtles and whatnot, take it up with them as it has zero to do with me.

If you’ve ever visited Indonesia, Thailand, China and whatnot, you’ll know exactly where all the plastic bags come from that end up in the sea: disorganised 3rd-world $#!%holes. A program to drastically reduce their rate of breeding would provide enormous environmental benefits.

OH MY GOD!!!

Reply
trevar2:20 pm 27 Jul 12

gasman said :

Because its really, really hard to remember to bring your own bags.

When I first started shopping I would always forget to bring my wallet. It made shopping very difficult. But after a while, I started to remember to bring my wallet. Having money made shopping much, much easier.

Now, the govmint has given us a new mind-bending challenge – to remember to bring my own bags. I now have to remember to bring 2 things. Wallet and bags. Or bags and weallet. Perhaps some voters find this task easy, but I have lots of trouble with it.

It would be so much simpler to bring back the old ways where shops handed out free plastic bags, and Menzies was still PM.

I’d vote for a party that promised to solve both problems by forcing supermarkets to provide both shopping bags AND groceries for free, thereby eliminating the need to bring either wallet or bags to the shop!

But why stop there? I think shops should bring my groceries to me, with no charge for groceries, bags or delivery! I mean, why should I have to bring my own car to the shop? It’s an injustice that I have to get off my bloated arse for another packet of frozen hash browns! They even expect me to microwave them myself! I mean, WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO!?!?!

Reply
HenryBG2:08 pm 27 Jul 12

enrique said :

Are you kidding?! Build a bridge and get over it.

FYI…

http://www.unep.org/themes/consumption/pdf/The_Dangers_of_Plastic_Bags.pdf
http://www.cleanup.org.au/PDF/au/cua_plastic_bags_fact_sheet.pdf
http://plasticbags.planetark.org/
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/index.html
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/plastic-bags/challenge.html

What a load of crap.
My plastic shopping bags are filled with rubbish and end up at the tip, in landfill.
If you’ve got problems with the people who feed plastic bags to sea turtles and whatnot, take it up with them as it has zero to do with me.

If you’ve ever visited Indonesia, Thailand, China and whatnot, you’ll know exactly where all the plastic bags come from that end up in the sea: disorganised 3rd-world $#!%holes. A program to drastically reduce their rate of breeding would provide enormous environmental benefits.

Reply
Mrs_Potato_Head2:04 pm 27 Jul 12

I suggest you do your shopping in Queanbeyan and get your free plastic bags there. When you return home empty one of the bags of its contents and place it over your head. Next use zip ties, duct tape or rope and place tightly around your neck.

If you follow these steps correctly, and you see a bright light, do us all a favour and run towards it.

Reply
nsn1:55 pm 27 Jul 12

Gantz said :

I refuse to generate a thought at your request, scumbag.

Johnboy, please reinstitute the “quotable quotes” from RiotACT of old – I would like to nominate this quote from Gantz!

Reply
gasman1:14 pm 27 Jul 12

Because its really, really hard to remember to bring your own bags.

When I first started shopping I would always forget to bring my wallet. It made shopping very difficult. But after a while, I started to remember to bring my wallet. Having money made shopping much, much easier.

Now, the govmint has given us a new mind-bending challenge – to remember to bring my own bags. I now have to remember to bring 2 things. Wallet and bags. Or bags and weallet. Perhaps some voters find this task easy, but I have lots of trouble with it.

It would be so much simpler to bring back the old ways where shops handed out free plastic bags, and Menzies was still PM.

Reply
pierce12:32 pm 27 Jul 12

Is it Liberal policy to repeal this?

Reply
arescarti4212:31 pm 27 Jul 12

I for one wholeheartedly support Mr. Gillespie’s ongoing battle against the terrible injustice forced upon us by the Greens/Labor menace. The plastic bag ban, which infringes upon our inalienable right to free plastic bags as set out in the Australian constitution, is just the beginning. Coming from a very much a-political and unbiased standpoint, I can safely say these greenie commo bastards are just trying to control our lives, and are using the “environment” as an excuse. It’s a very slippery slope from no free plastic bags to omnipresent government surveillance and public mind control.

So, I urge you all, when you come to vote in two months time, make an independent, informed, and reasoned choice by not voting for the Greens or Labor.

Reply
loulou8612:29 pm 27 Jul 12

Gosh you winge about the dumbest things. How about you learn how to put some plastic bags in your car?

Reply
bd8412:24 pm 27 Jul 12

Build a bridge and get the hell over it. You don’t have a god given right to have a free plastic bag for your chocolate bar, and using them as rubbish bags is not a valid excuse for them to be free either. You will just have to continue going to the shops and buying them like everything else in your house. Before you ask, no I won’t be voting for the Greens/Labor government, mostly because they are the biggest waste of space who cannot effectively plan, run and manage anything and have been pissing our money up against the wall for the past 6+ years.

Reply
HiddenDragon12:23 pm 27 Jul 12

Well said, although to me, the larger issue here is do we want elected officials who see a seat in the Assembly, and the power which goes with that, as an opportunity to ram their views, and the views of those whom they seek to please and appease, down our throats (at our expense) or do we want elected officials who see it as their primary role, and duty, to serve the Canberra public by doing for us, as effectively and efficiently as possible, those things which truly need to be done, and are genuinely worthy of doing, collectively, rather than individually?

I do not think that those who seek to displace the current majority in the Assembly should be required to promise, categorically, and regardless of costs and consequences, that they will overturn this, or other particular measures which their supporters dislike. Rather, in most instances, I would be happy to hear candidates make a persuasive argument that they will be focussed on somewhat more pressing issues – most particularly the state of our finances and accountability for spending on the major program areas – and so will be happy to let individuals decide for themselves how they run their day-to-day lives.

Reply
NWare12:17 pm 27 Jul 12

To use the shopping bag ban as a basis for your voting decisions, and to cal this ban an injustice, is ridiculous. I, personally, am glad for the ban and do not find it much effort at all to take my own bags when doing my grocery shopping. To “have to find something to carry all your groceries in” is surely not a difficult thing is it? I cannot escape the multitude of reusable bag options at my fingertips (and in my car)! Think ahead, pack your bags and if you do forget your reusable bags then you simply can purchase another.

Reply
artuoui12:12 pm 27 Jul 12

I’m surprised you still notice it. I’m even more surprised you’d think it worth revisiting the assembly debate in hansard.

You seem to be very slow to adapt to changed circumstances if this post and your previous comments about reduced speed limits through work sites are any guide..

Reply
Duffbowl12:04 pm 27 Jul 12

If I hadn’t read Mr Gillespie’s early missives on shopping bags, I’d call troll.

Yes, let’s decide who should govern the ACT solely on the most important issue facing Canberrans today – shopping bags.

This kind of thing is one of the reasons why we get mocked.

Reply
smcphill12:00 pm 27 Jul 12

Oh the injustice!

Mr Gillespie has posted 3 articles: 2 of them on the horror of having to pay for plastic shopping bags.

Life must be very good for My Gillespie. But perhaps not. Perhaps he is trying to be funny, or attempting to troll. If so, he’s failing.

Reply
Jerry Atric11:57 am 27 Jul 12

Actually I will be thinking of the injustice several million Somali Africans who have nothing to put into their legal plastic bags, will endure.

Reply
Grail11:48 am 27 Jul 12

OH NOES! Those nasty Greens are making me think about what I am doing!

I might have to keep bags in the car so that they are always ready for shopping trips!

I might have to cope with a landscape devoid of shredded plastic bags!

WHAT IS THE WORLD COMING TO WHEN I DON’T HAVE EVERYONE ELSE DOING MY THINKING FOR ME?!?!?!

Reply
futto11:39 am 27 Jul 12

It could only be overturned if the elected government wants to. If the Liberals get in, would they? Can anyone shed the light on what their policy is on this matter.

Back in November 2011, Mr Seselja concluded, “This illogical ban goes against evidence and will inconvenience customers and businesses” (http://www.canberraliberals.org.au/NEWSROOM/MEDIA-RELEASES-SESELJA/A-WORD-OF-CAUTION-ON-PLASTIC-BAG-BIN-DAY.asp)

Does that mean they will overturn it? Who knows.

Reply
davo10111:37 am 27 Jul 12

ACT Labor’s regrettable decision banning free shopping bags at Canberra checkouts

Oh dear, haven’t we been here before? As I asked before exactly where in the act does it say that shops can’t give you free bags?

All it says is that they can’t give you a non-biodegradable polyethylene bag less than 35 microns thick.

PS: Should have left this till early August, there’s no way you’re going to get this month’s Mully you’ve left it to late.

Reply
PantsMan11:31 am 27 Jul 12

I would support tanks on the streets on this issue.

Reply
colourful sydney racing identity11:19 am 27 Jul 12

get over it.

Reply
beejay7611:10 am 27 Jul 12

You’ve really got your panties in a bunch over this one, don’t you? Perhaps I’m a bit unusual, but it doesn’t bother me. If I drive, the bags live in my boot. If I walk I take my granny trolley. I don’t find it onerous to just pick up a bag or two as I leave the car.

Reply
Gantz10:38 am 27 Jul 12

I refuse to generate a thought at your request, scumbag.

Reply
View more conversations

What's Trending

News63

Brace for disruption: Light rail construction to start in February

Colin Vivian9 hours ago

D.c. Haas we both know the real reason for the tram to nowhere and it not to look at flowers View

Jack D.13 hours ago

What is your problem Leon Arundell or is it just you as an anti-rail proponent being given the… View

Matt Jorgensen16 hours ago

Pete McMahon prove your figures. That's right you can't. The costings for Stage One were $675… View

Join the conversation
News1

Rental bond fight over Macgregor house that 'failed basic amenities'

bessie12 hours ago

The tenants could use 40% of the property and had to pay accordingly. Interesting. You'd think the… View

Join the conversation
Property29

Low-density housing slump: Here's what ACT Government should do, says HIA

Greensburg Orbital13 hours ago

You have agreed that Canberra vacancy rates are relatively high compared with the rest of the… View

Jack D.14 hours ago

Here we go again! HIA and those in the building and construction industries telling the government… View

Small Family Business16 hours ago

Well said. View

Join the conversation
Property1

Master-planned community in Yass has high hopes to help address housing crisis

Monaro6813 hours ago

Hope the water quality issues are sorted. View

Join the conversation
News

Canberra motorists left in a sticky mess after heatwave 'melts' three major roads

By James Coleman
98
Courts & Crime

Charge dismissed for man convicted of illegal camping while sleeping in his car

By Claire Sams
News

Pool's out for summer: Big Splash closure leaves Belco high and dry

By James Coleman
48
Lifestyle

Driving to the South Coast these holidays? Here's what you need to know

By James Day
24
News

Flesh-eating Buruli ulcer could spread along NSW coast, study says

By Albert McKnight
2
News

Qatar Airways to resume daily flights to Canberra

By Ian Bushnell
3

Featured Properties

Zango Logo

Today's Poll

Do you support banning under 16s from social media?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
Explore 'Probing the Polls'

Featured Businesses

Lawyers

BDN Lawyers

BDN has provided legal services to to Canberra, Queanbeyan and the region for over 160 years.

Find out more

Lawyers

MV Law

Through a spirit of entrepreneurialism, collaboration, and future-forward thinking, MV Law have earned an industry-leading reputation.

Find out more

Insurance Brokers

allinsure

Allinsure has been a trusted insurance advisory to thousands of Australian business owners for almost 20 years.

Find out more

Mortgage Brokers

Clarity Home Loans

A passionate team of Canberrans helping other Canberrans secure their home loans. No frills, no commissions, no brainer.

Find out more

Professional Services

RSM

We share skills, insight and resources, as well as a client-centric approach that's based on a deep understanding of your business.

Find out more

Electricians

True Connection Electrical

Since 2014, True Connection Electrical have been servicing residential and small commercial clients with reliable, trustworthy and top-quality electrical work.

Find out more

Community Club

Canberra Southern Cross Club

We're proud to give you a place where friends and family can come together for good food and great entertainment.

Find out more

Lawyers

Kamy Saeedi Law

When you need a criminal or commercial lawyer, you don’t want to take any chances. You want someone in your corner that you can trust like your life depends on it - because it does.

Find out more
View the best of Canberra

What's On

Exhibition - Hopes and Fears: Australian Migration Stories
View all upcoming events

Related Stories

Probing the polls: plastic bags and public service integrity

Probing the polls: plastic bags and public service integrity

20 July 2023 | By Genevieve Jacobs
1
'Fun police': Backlash and praise for ACT ban on backyard firecrackers 15 years ago

'Fun police': Backlash and praise for ACT ban on backyard firecrackers 15 years ago

24 August 2024 | By Oliver Jacques
Start the conversation
Plastics ban expands to plates, bowls and microbeads, and your shopping bags are next

Plastics ban expands to plates, bowls and microbeads, and your shopping bags are next

1 June 2023 | By James Coleman
7
Social media ban passes on Senate's chaotic final sitting day

Social media ban passes on Senate's chaotic final sitting day

29 November 2024 | By Chris Johnson
1
ACCC gets more money to go after price 'dodgy supermarket practices'

ACCC gets more money to go after price 'dodgy supermarket practices'

3 October 2024 | By Chris Johnson
Start the conversation
Both major parties pat themselves on the back over controversial social media ban

Both major parties pat themselves on the back over controversial social media ban

2 December 2024 | By Chris Johnson
Start the conversation
‘Just two more seats’: Greens see realistic pathway to leading next ACT Government

‘Just two more seats’: Greens see realistic pathway to leading next ACT Government

16 September 2024 | By Oliver Jacques
Start the conversation
ACT Election 2024: The state of play at close of counting

ACT Election 2024: The state of play at close of counting

19 October 2024 | By Ian Bushnell and Oliver Jacques
200
Deadline set for Australia's live sheep exports

Deadline set for Australia's live sheep exports

3 July 2024 | By Chris Johnson
Start the conversation

Daily Digest

Want the best Canberra news delivered daily? Every day we package the most popular Riotact stories and send them straight to your inbox. Sign-up now for trusted local news that will never be behind a paywall.

By submitting your email address you are agreeing to Region Group's terms and conditions and privacy policy.