5p

I forgot to take a bag into Tesco tonight. That cost me my first 5p "fine". I think the guy at the self-service saw me mouth "oh, for f*** sake", when I realised. It was the inconvenience rather than the cost.

I'm slightly confused by the new charges for single use bags. Firstly, as I understand it, the Government makes no money - proceeds go straight to the retailer. Some have said they will donate it to charity, but they don't have to, they could choose to take the money.

The idea is to be socially responsible and reduce our use of bags. But the supermarkets seem to be selling the idea that using bags is donating to charity - Keep Scotland Beautiful anticipating £1m from Tesco.

So do we help the environment or support the charity? Strange conflict.

I've also come down with a cold after a busy weekend. Looking forward to a few days off now. Two days to go.