Just a Small Observation
I'm sure readers in the UK will have heard about the drop in profits at Marks and Spencer, and the subsequent dip in their share prices. In the media the fall in profits at M&S seems to be tantamount to the end of consumer spending, and the heralding of a recession.
I was reading through some of the reader's comments about this story on the BBC news website yesterday, and was amazed to find that a few people seemed to link the fall in M&S profits directly with their withdrawal of free plastic bags in April. Personally, I thought it was a brave move by M&S to be the first large retailer to start charging for plastic carriers in its food halls. I very rarely buy food in M&S myself - delicious though it is their prices are a little too 'rich' for me - although I do make an exception from time to time by treating myself to one of their fabulous Hoi Sin Duck Wraps. I certainly have no problem with putting what is a well-wrapped item into my own bag, nor would I have a problem with bringing along my own carrier bags - be they cloth or plastic - if I wanted to buy a lot of items there.
The paradox here is that Aldi (my favourite supermarket and, luckily for me, practically my corner shop) has always charged for plastic carrier bags, and at 3p or 9p per bag they are more expensive than M&S, and their profits have soared by 21 per cent in the past three months thanks to people trying out cheaper places to shop for food.
Most worryingly, one of the commentators on the BBC website yesterday claimed that plastic bags were not actually a problem for the environment!! Somehow I find that comment even more scary than the idea of a recession about to come and bite us all on the bum.
On a more genteel note, I'll leave you with a photo of a rosebud from the garden which co-ordinates rather nicely with some other items on my mantelpiece.