Sugar-tax advocate joins Beehive as senior adviser

Health Minister David Clark has hired a dentist and leading advocate for sugar taxes, Dr Rob Beaglehole, as a senior adviser, Clark’s office confirmed. The new Government’s stand on a sugar tax is not clear, although it has ruled out introducing new taxes in its first term. In an opinion piece for the Dominion Post in March, Beaglehole wrote that ‘‘big soda’’ could not be trusted to self-regulate. ‘‘It prioritises profit over health ... [W]e need to treat the sugarydrink industry the same way we treat tobacco firms.’’ A spokesman for Clark denied the move signalled a project to introduce a sugar tax. Food and Grocery Council chief executive Katherine Rich said the appointment was surprising: ‘‘Being a ministerial adviser is a highly influential role.’’