Tuesday 13 October 2015

That twenty per cent tax on soft drinks

Further to my previous post, scholars of the slippery slope won't be surprised by this, but those who think a twenty per cent tax on fizzy drinks will be the end of the matter should heed Graham MacGregor's words from today's health select committee:

Graham MacGregor (Action on Sugar): "Most countries see this as an escalating tax. They start off at ten per cent. Mexico now wants to go to twenty per cent. France has gradually increased it. Finland last year was blocked by the food industry - everywhere you see the power of the food industry trying to block these moves [nurse! - CJS] - but like alcohol and cigarettes, once you'ved started you gradually screw it up [he means racket it up - CJS] . It becomes like cigarettes. There's something like an 800 per cent tax on cigarettes now and yet we're quite happy with that."

Don't say you weren't warned.

And if you think diet drinks (ie. sugar-free drinks) will escape, MacGregor wants to tax those as well because they give people the taste for sweetness. The word 'fanatic' hardly suffices. I really recommend you watch this mad bugger in action to see what liberals are up against. It always amazes me how we can scoff at the Carrie Nations and Mary Whitehouses of the past without seeing them in our own time.



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