George Young

Senior Media Relations Officer

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NEARLY EIGHT IN 10 BRITS WANT MONEY RAISED FROM LATTE LEVIES TO GO TO CHARITY

23 January 2019

New polling shows that the vast majority of the British public is supportive of ideas to protect the environment, such as latte levies and plastic bottle deposit schemes. 77% of Brits believe these schemes are good for the environment.

The polling also reveals that 63% want any monies raised from latte levies to go towards environmental charities, whilst nearly eight in 10 (78%) want monies raised to go to charities in general. By comparison, only 3% said funds should go to the Government.

This follows the success of the 5p plastic bag levy, which Prime Minister Theresa May suggested could increase to 10p in the near future. This has already raised millions of pounds for charities since its introduction in October 2015.

Bottle levy money should go to charity

The Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) commissioned the research in December 2018. Since 2017 the “Blue Planet II effect” has highlighted the plastic waste afflicting our oceans, and the data indicates that the British public is largely in favour of finding new ways to address environmental issues.

Other key findings from the research include that 43% would be more likely to visit coffee shop chains that reinvested a portion of their profits in environmental charities, whilst 84% want retailers and coffee shops to do more to ensure that their cups are recyclable or biodegradable, with only 3% disagreeing.

Just under half (49%) of respondents to CAF’s survey said they would be more likely to visit a coffee shop chain if they introduced policies such as latte levies and plastic bottle deposit schemes.

The British public was consistently supportive of retailers introducing environmental practices across all regions of the country. Young people and women tended to be especially supportive.

Commenting on the research, Susan Pinkney, Head of Research at the Charities Aid Foundation adds:

“These findings from December of last year follow on from similar research that we conducted in June. On both occasions, the data points to people wanting retailers and coffee shops to continue with environmentally friendly policies, such as latte levies and plastic bottle deposit schemes.

“The success of schemes such as the 5p plastic bag levy – which we at CAF have used to distribute millions of pounds to good causes around the country – shows that many Britons are ready and willing to support new ways to protect the environment.”

Notes to editors

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc.  Total sample size was 1,138 adults aged 16+. Fieldwork was undertaken online between 19th – 31st December 2018. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 16+).

CAF exists to make giving go further, so that more lives and communities around the world can be transformed.

CAF is a charity and a champion for better giving, and for over 90 years has helped donors, companies, charities and social organisations make a bigger impact. Through CAF Bank, it offers simple and straightforward day-to-day banking, designed exclusively for charities.

We are CAF and we make giving count.

www.cafonline.org

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