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"The whole issue of tax on sugary sweets and drinks has not gone away" - Health Minister

The Health Minister says he is disappointed that his request to see a sugar tax introduced in Bud...
Newstalk
Newstalk

15.03 14 Oct 2015


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"The whole issue of ta...

"The whole issue of tax on sugary sweets and drinks has not gone away" - Health Minister

Newstalk
Newstalk

15.03 14 Oct 2015


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The Health Minister says he is disappointed that his request to see a sugar tax introduced in Budget 2016 was not approved.

A tax on sugar-sweetened drinks was one of the measures Leo Varadkar had suggested as a means of tackling obesity among young people.

Leo Varadkar says he is looking at establishing a working group to work on a proposal in advance of the next budget.

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Minister Varadkar says the introduction of a sugar tax in the future has not been fully ruled out, and there was no 'outright rejection' from the Department of Finance.

Speaking to Jonathan Healy on Newstalk Lunchtime today, Minister Varadkar said "in any Budget you put forward sets of proposals... Generally speaking you get around half of them through, and the other half you put on the list for next year.

"The whole issue of tax on sugary sweets and drinks has not gone away. We are starting to see some evidence from Mexico and other countries where it has had a real effect on obesity, and I think it's something we should try here," he added.

He told Jonathan that there was not necessarily resistance, but the Department of Finance wanted more time to study the proposal and see how it might be implemented. 

Minister Varadkar also criticised Bertie Ahern's remarks on the Budget, suggesting that the former Taoiseach's comments were "total tripe really".

"There's a world of difference between the kind of giveaway budgets occurred under Fianna Fáil to what we did yesterday," he added.

You can listen to Minister Varadkar's full interview below:


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