UK & World News
- 16 May 2012, 12:35
Obesity Levels Could Be Cut With 20% Fat Tax
A 20% "fat tax" on unhealthy food and drink could help cut the number of people suffering from obesity and heart disease.
Such a move should be combined with subsidies on healthy foods such as fruit and vegetables, academics from bmj.com said.
The group released their findings ahead of the 65th World Health Assembly in Geneva where prevention and control of non-communicable diseases will be key issues for discussion.
Dr Oliver Mytton and colleagues at the University of Oxford said evidence suggests taxing a wide range of unhealthy foods is likely to result in greater health benefits than "narrow taxes" - although the strongest evidence related to taxing sugary drinks.
They said one American study found a 35% tax on sugar-sweetened drinks in a canteen led to a 26% decline in sales.
Studies extending VAT on unhealthy foods in the UK could cut up to 2,700 heart disease deaths a year, the researchers said.
what do you think?
info
Why do they not develop a single tablet that will give the correct dietry food quantity, then they can gives us 1 per day of which we have to queue up for at a feeding point of our choice. Anyone found fatter than a lat would be prosecuted and made to lay prostrate at the government official's feet. What fun it would be to go out for a meal with friends in the evening and choose from a choice of coloured tablets on the menu.
David Wragg
Sounds as if that would suit the authorities just right. What a 'Brave New World' we are living in.
David Wragg
Yes, something has to be done, but why yet another tax? Tax, tax, tax, tax, that's all those in government think about these days.
bobh_385
its to provide more "jobs for the boys" in the infernal revenue.
Dennis Nash
Increasing tax on so called "unhealthy" food and drink for everybody is an insult and unfair to sensible people. Why should we all have to pay more for something just because of the bad habits of a few? I have a healthy diet but if I occassionally fancy somethiing "unhealthy" why should I be penalised? Just because the yanks have thought about it and carried out some studies doesn't mean we should do it. Also petrol, alcohol and tobacco taxes have risen but people still pay the price - where there's a will there's a way!
Name witheld
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Sarah Fuller
I do not have huge amounts to spend on food each week and I work full time, but i do not eat "crushed up bones and collagen fibre. Sensibly shopping and eating fresh produce rather than packged food which is bought because people are lazy helps me keep slim and my family healthy. I agee with Dennis why should I have to pay more if I would like the odd treat. They should just not be allowed to buy it if they are fat, we should tax fat peolpe more then they would exercise and get fitter which would cost the NHS less in the end.
gordon
They said one American study found a 35% tax on sugar-sweetened drinks in a canteen made no difference to 74% So it will be a big mac, large fries and a diet coke, and that's just for breakfast.
Will Baker
Its more a case of teaching people to have more respect for themselves and their bodies. I personally have no sympathy for someone who stuffs their faces with no thought for their health or the concequences for those around them. But hey ho thats just me.
Mike Eaton
what a fantastic idea! extra tax on unhealthy foodstuffs! brilliant - sales will go down factories that make this stuff will go bust and close, people will be laid off. No money to buy other food! Put 'em on the dole we have lots of money from the tax on unhealty foods - ah but its not enough to pay all that unemployment benefit! clever some of these 'think tanks' aren't they, wonder what pointless exercise they will think of next?!
bobh_385
How about a tax on running? as runners use up more of our precious oxygen than couch potatoes.Now I've come up with a silly idea, can I have a cushy fatcat job on a think tank?
Fiona Prendergast
ok so they tax everything that is not healthy but we have so little money to feed and pay the bills etc that we are left with eating cheap food etc this is just another way of getting money out of everyone and yet again the rich won't feel a thing because they are already eating the finer things of life. I am On the larger side of life and every problem i have is put down to my size i am fed up of hearing it my diet is as healthy as money will allow and as i am also diabetic i don't have sugery foods and because of my size ihave to eat heathly but it costs alot of money as i have to look for hidden sugar all this tax etc will weigh heavely on most people STOP TAXING EVERYTHING
Eric Coster
how about a tax on the idiots who created this mess in the first place. Just think children who have just started school will know that when they leave school they will never have a job.
EQINOX187 .
These people fail to see why people eat unhealthy food and i dont mean those that eat nothing but McDonalds im talking about the unhealthy food from supermarkets. The fact is it is and always has been cheaper to buy unhealthy prossessed meals / food over health alternatives an example of this would be farmfoods selling a pack of 8 prossessed beaf steaks for £2 were as at ASDA it at £6 to £8 for just 2 fresh beaf steaks with chicken and fish just as exspensive. So people on a low income often have little option but to go the cheap and unhealthy way and this in turn can result in an over weight situation. So all this tax will acheave is to yet again tax the poor of this country and further push them into debt / poverty. They also fail to see the economic impact and the resulting job losses. I hate to admit it but places like McDonalds / burgerking / KFC and many many many more places could be hit hard by this and the resulting job losses it would cause. So lets say if McDonalds was to shed alot of staff UK wide to offset the cost of this tax then all these staff would sign on and be added to the growing list of unemployed now add into the mix all the smaller independant fast food places and howmany closures and job losses would be found here. In the end this tax would result in the poor getting poorer and a greater level of unemployment with an even greater burden on the benofit system.
Fred Spoons
Sod MacDonald's and the like. Perhaps you might volunteer to clear up the fast food rubbish dropped on our streets every night
DJ Hones
Great!!!!!!!! so now I am going to have to pay more for my monthly takeaway treat, more for my well earned alcoholic beverage & my little treats from the supermarket each week. Thanks very much to all the think tanks, govt. ministers and do gooders who think that I should pay for someone else's excess and over indulgence. Keep it coming, you have not managed to claim all of my income in taxes yet but your getting there, won't be long now.
bobh_385
yes, its typical of the way politicians have thought over the last 40 years--punish the innocent not the guilty.
Viv hanshall
bobh - don't be so ridiculous. That is exactly how taxes work. It's called living in a progressive community. People pay taxes that support schools (when they don't have children) the army (when they are pacifist) the railways (when they walk to work) the ambulance crews to pick up the drunks at the weekend (when they are abstemious) and for fatties to eat themselves into hospital. The issue is that the latter is becoming very expensive so the Govt are looking at ways of reducing the bill for the NHS
bobh_385
yes Viv and I pay 2 lots of road fund tax but it doesn't get spent on the roads. I agree the problem is getting worse but taxing people that have the odd bit of fish n chips is completely wrong,thats what I mean about punishing the innocent.Make the pie m unchers pay,they are the ones that got themselves into that state
Viv hanshall
Tax the suppliers. By all means put a tax on the crap that people eat but make the suppliers and producers pay the tax. This will put an end to the fattie fast foods and the processed ready cooked rubbish that people seem to enjoy (and the NHS has to pay for)
Elvin Eastwood
its ok taxing the fattys but what about us skinnys that need to put fat on....me thinks just another stupid idea from a clueless goverment
Elvin Eastwood
i know stick cameron in a pot with a few carrots and eat him
John Andrew
Had this on radio while at work and some guy made a very valid point!! ok tax fatty foods but slash Healthy food stuffs to a lower level so people can afford healthier foods seems lately ways to squeeze what ever revenue they can from there think tanks!
Fred Spoons
They are all in cloud cuckoo land. Stop throwing my money at people who by their own volition keep shoving rubbish down their throats. Better spend the money on people who cannot afford to feed themselves or their children.
John Ambrose
Nice little earner for Dave and Co.Lets face it these fools running the country or the other lot oppostion could not care less about Joe Publics health ,the levels of stress that a lot of people are having to live with currently is causing the overweight problem If they gave a dam then any money gerated by thiis tax should be used to cut the price of fruit etc but no thats not going to happen in a million years.
Danny Cooper
11:44am on 16/5/2012
Haha. So that extra 20% would bring the price of unhealthy food to a level price as the healthy food. And unhealthy drinks will cost almost as much as a bottle of water? ¿ tax tax tax...
Richard Paine
11:54am on 16/5/2012
Cannot disagree with your comments, politicians don't care. All said and done, they stuff their faces with subsidised booze and good food at the taxpayers expense in the troughs of parliament.
David Wragg
12:00pm on 16/5/2012
Good point. Some of our politicians look very roly-poly. In fact, I have never seen a lean politician, and some of them are not very sober either.