MORE PEOPLE in Strabane need to refuse to take a plastic bag.

That's the advice of Baglady Shirley Lewis when she visited the town last week.

The Baglady, accompanied by a camera crew, visited Strabane last Friday to film local people in the NEEDabag? campaign.

The campaign aims to rid the North of 500 million plastic bags [figures at April 2006].

Taking part in the film were children from St Mary's Boys and St Anne's Girls schools, as well as SuperValu manager Martin McBrearty whose nephew Kevin was among the St Mary's boys, and local shoppers.

Strabane Council provided the venue for the public editing by Richard Jolly and Jonathan Mitchell, which can be seen on the Baglady website and YouTube.

"We had a very warm welcome in Strabane," said the Baglady.

But she adds, "We noticed a lot of rubbish being dropped in Strabane and there are still a lot of plastic bags leaving the shops.'

"More shops need to ask people the simple question, 'Do you NEEDabag?' and more people need to say 'No thankyou.'

Strabane is one of 16 communities being filmed with funding from the NI Film and TV Commission.

The Derry film is out on June 9, whilst Limavady was filmed in 2005 as part of NEEDabag? 1.

All films can be seen on www.bagladyproductions.org

The Baglady added, "We're asking people all over the North to support us.

"We've got to catch up with the South. If we can't get rid of plastic bags, what CAN we do?