Our leaders are saving us from the threat of "dangerous" disposable merchandise - with taxes!

Recently a law in France was passed to tax plastic cutlery to try to encourage consumers to buy more eco-friendly products, and Paris is planning to expand the measure to include several other items, the environment minister announced last Monday.

There are similar taxes on disposable items in Malta and closer to home in Ireland; the plastic carrier bag tax of 15 Eurocents per bag was introduced in 2002. In Europe we are starting to see a variety of stores charge for bags, or only offer "bags for life" at checkouts or their Anya Hindmarch equivalents. Sainsburys have announced this week that they will not give carrier bags away at the tills and customers must request them.

There is apparently a law in Spain that states that companies serving food are required to lay a new table cloth (or serve food on a wipable table) after each customer. Restaurants in Spain use large amounts of disposable paper table cloths as this law would require the restaurants to either have an abundance of linen table covers or serve their meals on McDonalds style wipable tables in order to meet their obligations. Not really the look most restaurants would aim for (unless you run a KFC/Burger King et al).

In the UK we have some laws regarding disposable products which don't fit well with the apparent "eco" policies of governments past and present. One such law is that recycled paper cannot be used to make items which come into direct contact with food. A sensible idea methinks; you don't want to be eating your lunch from a disposable plate which used to be loo roll. However many companies in UK, in order to be seen to be eco-friendly and 'doing their bit' are offering plates and Catering Supplies made from re-graded material. But how you ask? Surely thousands are falling ill from bum to mouth disease or something? Well no, what the companies are doing is laminating the top of the paper plates with plastic so the food don't actually touch the surface of the paper. Great idea?! No, bad idea. The product is now single use in the strongest sense of the word(s). These new plates cannot be recycled into anything and will need to go to landfill as the paper and plastic are fused together forever.

Just because a product is made from re-claimed material does not mean it is a "green" product, attention to how the product is made and if the product can be recycled after use is most important. Every product Event Supplies sell can be recycled and many are made from recycled paper where the law allows, and they do let you know what the goods are made from. Beware of people cashing in on the whole green hoopla at the moment with really not very environmentally sound products.

A common law and set of taxes for the whole of the EU could possibly be the way forward with regard to disposable products such as paper plates, Paper Cups and Plastic Cups. One country taxing a particular disposable product heavily could mean governments in their quest to be seen to be doing the right thing will unwittingly close disposable manufacturing companies leaving thousands out of work.

I do wonder however, how the Government profiteering over anything disposable will save the planet. People will simply spend more and we doubt all the money in the world can stop seas from rising and landfill sites from being overfilled. Personally I like the plastic bag tax, this one works and fewer plastic bags are being used as a result and people still get their shopping home. Some products however, you cannot simply substitute with products that are "for life". People need to be responsible for recycling; the onus should be on us at home and work.