Environmentally friendly or just another tax on hard hit shoppers? The so-called 'plastic bag tax' is coming to a shop near you next week

So we are only a matter of days away from the new carrier bag levy. It's commonly known as the plastic bag tax, but it also applies to other types of bags. From Monday we will be forced to pay at least 5p per bag. That 5p will go to the Department of Environment. The aim is to reduce our single use carrier bag usage - but will this actually work and help the environment? Or is it just another tax on hard hit shoppers and businesses?