Push up tax on sweets and salty snacks to fight obesity, say MPs
HIGHER rates of tax should be slapped on unhealthy foods to help combat the country’s obesity epidemic, MPs said last night.
They said ministers should consider increasing VAT on foods with high fat, sugar or salt content ‘as a possible measure to tackle childhood obesity’.
The move, proposed by the Commons health select committee, could see treats such as chocolate bars or crisps going up significantly in price.
The MPs also suggested the sugar tax – which currently applies only to fizzy drinks – be extended to chocolate, puddings and milk shakes.
The report comes as it was revealed the childhood obesity crisis is getting worse, with more than 22,500 ten and 11-year-olds in England and Wales classed as being severely obese.
A recent study found that 35 per cent of Scots are now overweight or obese by the time they reach the age of 14.
The proposal to extend the sugar tax is part of a major
‘The Milky Bar Kid would be dropped’
report by the health select committee, which also calls for a 9pm watershed on junk food advertising, a ban on cartoon characters advertising unhealthy foods and restrictions on discounts and buy-oneget-one-free junk food deals.
The move comes less than a month after First Minister Nicola Sturgeon set a new target to cut child obesity in Scotland by half by 2030.
The Scottish Government is to set the new target in a healthy diet plan, due to be published in the summer. It is expected to include restrictions on the promotion and advertising of junk food. Measures could include a ban on two-for-one pizza deals.
At present in the UK, most food is VAT zero-rated, but many types of junk food attract the standard rate of 17.5 per cent. Other countries go further: in France, for example, sweets, chocolates, margarine and vegetable fat attract a VAT rate of 20.6 per cent, whereas healthier foods attract VAT of 5.5 per cent.
The MPs’ report said: ‘We recommend that the Government undertake a consultation on the adjustment of VAT rates on food and drink after Brexit as a possible measure to tackle childhood obesity.’
Lorraine Tulloch, of Obesity Action Scotland, said: ‘I am delighted to see cross-party support for bold measures to tackle junk food advertising, marketing, pricing and improving information available to consumers. We must see our governments implement this urgently.
‘Nicola Sturgeon’s recently announced ambition to halve childhood obesity in Scotland by 2030 will require such bold action to be progressed.’
The committee called for a ban on ‘brand-generated characters or licensed TV and film characters’ which are used to promote foods high in fat, sugar or salt on TV and the internet.
A ban would mean Tony the Tiger and the Milky Bar Kid would have to be dropped or used to promote healthier products. But the Jolly Green Giant could continue to be used to promote vegetables.
The committee said supermarkets should be forced to remove unhealthy snacks from the ends of aisles, and checkouts and social media sites should reduce children’s exposure to inappropriate advertising and marketing.