Ban smoking and tax fruit juice, says George Osborne
Smoking should be banned and the sugar tax extended to include fruit juice and milkshakes, George Osborne has said.
In 2016, the Conservative former chancellor announced a sugar tax on soft drinks such as Coca-Cola and Irn Bru, claiming the money would be used to provide more sports funding for primary schools. It was not levied on milk-based drinks or fruit juices.
Now Osborne believes Rishi Sunak’s government should go a step further and tax biscuits and cakes, and raise the legal age for tobacco to help reduce levels of obesity and cancer.
Last year, New Zealand introduced a steadily rising smoking age to stop those aged 14 and under from being able to legally buy cigarettes in world-first legislation to outlaw smoking for the next generation.
Discussing a potential smoking ban, Osborne told the Times Health Commission: “You basically phase it out. Of course you’re going to have lots of problems with illegal smoking but you have lots of problems with other illegal activities.
“It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to ban them and police them and make it less readily available. I thought that was a compelling public health intervention.”
Earlier this year, Labour said it was considering plans to phase out smoking for young people. Other areas under consideration include minimum alcohol pricing and the soft drink and junk food industries.
The shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, said in January: “The New Zealand government are doing it. We want to see how that works … We’re going to have to think radically. What the government have done to the NHS is a disgrace. It’s going to take time to fix it and fresh radical thinking and that’s what Labour’s about.”
When Osborne introduced the sugar tax as chancellor, he faced heavy
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