Blog

Unintended consequences of the 5p bag charge

Ruth Tarrant

6th October 2015

Share this content:

In the weeks prior to the introduction of the 5p bag charge in England, major supermarket chains decided to stock up on wire shopping baskets, with one chain reportedly purchasing an additional 60,000 of them!

Share this content:

Ruth Tarrant

Ruth has been Subject Lead in Economics at tutor2u for many years after a career of teaching Economics, Business, Politics and Maths in a range of secondary schools. She is a highly experienced A level Economics Examiner, and also teaches undergraduate Economics on a very part-time basis at the University of Oxford. Ruth is passionate about making economics fun, engaging and accessible.

In the News Teaching Activity – Does the childcare industry need regulating to reduce hidden costs to parents? (June 2026)

4th June 2026

Explore

More for students

Teaching Economics

Unintended consequences of the 5p bag charge

Ruth Tarrant

You might also like

Enrichment Economics: Can Economists Actually Run True Experiments?

In the News Teaching Activity – What policies help raise the birth rate in an economy? (June 2026)

In the News Teaching Activity – Has nationalisation improved South West Railway? (June 2026)

In the News Teaching Activity – Does the childcare industry need regulating to reduce hidden costs to parents? (June 2026)

In the News Teaching Activity – Should UK data centres be allowed to be run on gas? (May 2026)

In the News Teaching Activity – Why has the UK digital services tax triggered US tariff threats? (May 2026)

Should SUV owners pay more towards filling in potholes? (Apr 2026)

Micro Case Study: Ofgem and Price Caps

Explore

More for students

Subjects

Quick links

Student events & courses

Teaching Economics

Unintended consequences of the 5p bag charge

Ruth Tarrant

You might also like