Tesco forced to tag baskets after spike in thefts
One shocking result of the introduction of a 5p charge for carrier bags has been a spate of thefts of supermarket shopping baskets. One Tesco store in Oldham lost a third of all its baskets in a week, and has taken the shocking step of security-tagging its baskets.
The Manchester Evening News reported that third of the baskets had been lifted by light-fingered shoppers in the first week. A Tesco spokesperson told the Daily Mail there had been a significant rise in the number of stolen baskets from the store, and to ensure that enough remained for honest customers to use in the shop, they had been forced to tag them.
Twitter users have also shared news of their local stores adding security tags - everywhere from Whitstable to Sheffield and Newport in South Wales to Canary Wharf.
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Losing the plot over 5p
It's another bizarre twist in the 5p bag saga - which has already seen its share of oddities.
First came a spate of stories told by customers who had decided to take their shopping to the car in a basket - with every intention of bringing it back - and had been tackled by security. Even on the first day that the charge was in operation one woman in East London said she had been accosted by security staff.
Meanwhile, one Asda shopper was banned from the store after losing his temper and causing a scene when asked to pay for a carrier bag.
Then came the inevitable social media photograph of a trolley in someone's house with a caption asking why he should pay 5p for a carrier bag when he could get a whole trolley for a pound. The Failsworth trolley thief has apparently been inundated with abusive tweets as a result.
And finally, a desperate Tesco worker in Canary Wharf ended up tagging the carrier bags for life - as so many people were simply taking them without paying.
Who knew we could get quite so upset about 5p?
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