Unhealthy soft drinks should be hit with a 20p sugar tax as a “useful first step” towards the long-term goal of taxing a wide range of products that fuel obesity, doctors’ leaders are urging.
The British Medical Association (BMA) said imposing the tax could reduce the prevalence of obesity in the UK by around 180,000 people. The money raised from the tax could be used to subsidise cheaper fruit and vegetables for poor families, the organisation suggests.
With a third of the population projected to be obese by 2030, it also wants to see all free schools and academies adhere to the same “strict food regulations” in place in state schools as well as improved teaching about cooking and healthy eating for pupils.
Its report, Food For Thought, warns that poor diet costs the NHS around £6bn a year, meaning it has a greater impact on its budget than alcohol consumption, smoking or physical inactivity.
The authors said academic research found the healthiest diets cost double the price of the least healthy ones, and while the price of unhealthy foods has been shown to be decreasing over time, the gap between the price of healthy and unhealthy foods is widening. The BMA’s report suggests that imposing a minimum 20p tax on all non-alcoholic water-based beverages with added sugar, including sugar-sweetened soft drinks, energy drinks, fruit drink, sports drinks and fruit-juice concentrates, could help reduce the price of fruit and vegetables.
The report said various mass-media public health campaigns aimed at promoting healthier diets have been found to be “ineffective” in the past.
