Council leaders have criticised a promise made by UK  retailers to reduce the environmental impact of plastic carrier bags and called on them to be more innovative.
Cllr Paul Bettison, chairman of the Local Government Association environmental board said: ‘Retailers should think of giving customers reusable fabric bags. Around 13 billion plastic carrier bags are used every year in the UK. Most people throw their bags straight into the bin which means the bag ends up being buried in landfill.'