Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne recently announced that a tax will be imposed on sugary beverages in the United Kingdom. Government officials and citizens received the news with mixed reactions.
“We all know one of the biggest contributors to childhood obesity is sugary drinks. I am not prepared to look back at my time here in this parliament, doing this job and say to my children’s generation, ‘I’m sorry. We knew there was a problem with sugary drinks. We knew it caused disease but we ducked the difficult decisions,” George Osborne said in an ABC report.
Many questioned why the government opted to introduce such a tax, where only a few countries are affected. Others believe that the government was forced to impose such a levy after celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s massive campaign, which garnered over 150,000 signatures.
Jamie Oliver celebrated online when the tax was announced. Jamie Oliver proceeded to urge other countries like Australia, Germany and Canada to follow suit. “It’s about time your governments got on this. Australia, pull your finger out,” Jamie Oliver stated.
Based on various studies, children are more sedentary than before. There is a growing number of children who enter primary school in an obese state. Family members also consumed too much sugar and saturated fat, while their consumption of fish, fiber, fruits and vegetables diminished. The evidence showed that taxing sugary drinks will affect people’s consumption and hopefully curb the occurrence of obesity and other related diseases.
BBC reported that according to the analysis, the sales of drinks with the highest sugar content will decrease by 5 percent although there will be an increase in lower-sugar beverages by 2 percent. The government is also set to feature its child obesity campaign in summer 2016. Osborne said that the tax will have two bands – beverages with over five grams and eight grams per 100 milliliters, respectively.
ABC cited that Jamie Oliver also encouraged Australia to follow the example of the United Kingdom and impose a sugar tax on soft drinks. The levy will be introduced in the next two years, charging manufacturers if their drinks contain over five grams of sugar per 100 milliliters.
