Tony Blair calls for junk food tax and tougher regulations to tackle obesity – comparing it to smoking ban which he brought in
- Sir Tony Blair said the UK should impose new taxes and restrictions on junk food
- The ex-prime minister said tackling the obesity crisis is vital for the NHS’s future
Sir Tony Blair has said he would hike the UK’s sugar tax and impose tougher regulations on the food industry in a bid to tackle Britain’s obesity crisis.
Speaking to The Times Health Commission, the former prime minister said he would introduce new taxes on foods high in fat salt and sugar and restrict adverts for unhealthy foods.
He said measures aimed at tackling unhealthy eating are essential for creating a sustainable future for the NHS, as he argued the government must help people ‘take responsibility’ for their health.
The ex-Labour leader brushed aside concerns about the ‘nanny state’ and instead compared measures aimed at curbing obesity with efforts to reduce smoking, including the indoor smoking ban.
He said government’s should disregard ‘minority view’ opposition to tougher restrictions and instead ‘just get on with it and drive it through’.
Sir Tony Blair (pictured) said he would impose new taxes and restrictions on the junk food industry
His comments come as the current government has recently delayed a series of measures to tackle the junk food industry, including a ban on advertising unhealthy food before 9pm and a ban on ‘buy one get one free’ deals.
Obesity is currently the second biggest cause of cancer and costs the NHS £6.5billion a year, with two thirds of British adults now classified as obese or overweight.
Sir Tony Blair said the NHS must start focusing on ‘prevention’ over simply treating people when they’re already ill, if it is to ensure it continues functioning as a ‘modern healthcare system’ in the future.
‘We’ve got to shift from a service that’s treating people when they’re ill to a service that’s treating people when they’re ill to a service that is focused on wellbeing, on prevention, on how people live more healthy lives,’ he said.
‘You can’t run a modern healthcare system where people are going to live much longer unless they take some responsibility.’
Obesity is currently the second biggest cause of cancer and costs the NHS £6.5billion a year
‘You’ve got to help them do that. The way of helping them do that, particularly with poor families, is to create the circumstances in which [they can choose healthier food],’ the ex-prime minister said.
He said he would expand the 2018 sugar tax and introduce new taxes and restrictions on unhealthy food.
‘Diet is really important. You’re also doing no favours to you people [by not taking action]. If their diet is poor, their health is going to be poor, their lives are going to be poorer.’
The ex-prime minister said ‘nanny state’ criticisms are a ‘minority view’ as he argued: ‘You’ve got to grip these decisions. You’ve just got to take the decision and get on with it and drive it through.’
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