Boris Johnson promises to revise sugar tax – Brinkwire

Boris Johnson announced a thorough review of the "Stealth Taxes of Sin" just days before his prominent advocate, Health Secretary Matt Hanbad, issued a green paper advocating the extension of the tax on stealth. Milkshake sugar.

The Green Paper "Advancing Our Health – Prevention in the 2020s" was circulated among ministers this week and is expected to be published in the coming days.

A rough draft reviewed by the Guardian includes very diverse plans to extend the sugar tax to "sweetened milk drinks … if the evidence shows that the industry has not made enough progress in reducing sugar ". It also announces the ban on the sale of energy drinks to people under 16, as well as many other measures to improve public health.

The government has been consulting on the proposals for months and Hanbad's deputy minister, Seema Kennedy, was to release the green paper in the coming days. However, in his last campaign pledge, Johnson announced that he would examine whether "fictitious taxes on stealthy sin" have managed to change behavior and whether they have disproportionately affected the poorest consumers.

"The recent milking tax proposal seems to me to be a burden for those who can afford it the least. If we want people to lose weight and have a healthier lifestyle, encourage them to walk, bike and exercise more. Rather than taxing more people, we should examine the effectiveness of so-called "sin taxes" and whether they actually change their behavior, Johnson said.

"Once we leave the EU on October 31, we will have a historic opportunity to change the way politics is conducted in this country. A good way to start would be to base tax policy on clear evidence. "

His promise seemed to be designed to enthuse conservative members concerned about unnecessary restrictions imposed by "nanny state". But it also seemed to end several months of hard work in the Hanbad Department – and Johnson's decision to impose a 10% tax. 100 on sugary drinks at City Hall while he was mayor of London.

Hanbad left the leadership race after finishing sixth in the first round and unexpectedly throwing his weight behind Johnson. The Allies baderted at the time that he would be able to hold the favorite of his promise to govern as a conservative nation, at the center of politics.

In a recent speech, the Secretary of Health welcomed the sugar tax, claiming that she had "eliminated the equivalent of 90 million kg of sugar since its introduction in 2016, proving that applicable measures to the whole population functioned and were needed, alongside the promotion of behaviors make better choices. "

Johnson does not categorically exclude the extension of the tax. He indicated that he would proceed first to a "thorough review" of the effectiveness of these measures and that he would stop the deployment of any new "sin tax" up to ########################################## 39 that it is finished.

Health activists have expressed disappointment. Shirley Cramer, executive director of the Royal Society of Public Health, said, "One of the successes of the last Conservative government was the introduction of the sugar tax for soft drinks. The evidence shows that the sugar tax worked. Nearly half of the non-alcoholic beverages market has reduced sugar in their products to avoid costs. We should take advantage of the success of the sugar tax and not go back on the progress made so far.

A spokesman for the Hanbad Department pointed to the success of the sugar tax and said: "Our obesity and public health policies have always been evidence-based and will continue to flourish. to be in the future. "