Media release: Minister Coleman is rightly sceptical about sugar taxes
Wellington (4 April 2016): Health Minister Jonathan Coleman is right to be sceptical about sugar and soda taxes, says The New Zealand Initiative.
“While a handful of countries have tried sugar taxes, evidence that they will work is not as convincing as public health experts suggest,” says policy analyst Jenesa Jeram.
“Too many studies claim victory without actually showing a reduction in obesity. For example, a study may find that people drink less soda if it is taxed. That won’t reduce obesity if people shift to untaxed foods and drinks that are not much better for them.”
Mexico’s sugar-sweetened beverage taxes has been lauded a success by health professionals, despite the fact it is very early days (implemented in 2014), and with no real evidence that the tax has reduced obesity. Likening a sugar tax to the current tobacco excise regime is also problematic.
“Doctors like to cite the effects of Mexico’s peso-per-litre tax on sugar-sweetened beverages, but Mexico’s peso-per-litre tax, in New Zealand terms, would be about $2 per litre if it were the same fraction of a New Zealand minimum wage worker’s income,” noted Head of Research Dr Eric Crampton.
Dr Crampton continued, “Further, while doctors rightly note the success of tobacco excise in cutting smoking, tobacco excise is the equivalent of a 150% tax on cigarettes, not a 20% tax. If health experts want New Zealand to wind up with a 150% tax on sugar, they should say so at the outset.”
The New Zealand Initiative will be releasing a report on lifestyle regulations, including sugar taxes, later this month. The Health of the State, authored by Jenesa Jeram, will be launched at a public event in Wellington.
Panellists include:
- Jenesa Jeram, Policy Analyst, The New Zealand Initiative
- Dr Girol Karacaoglu, Chief Economist and Deputy Secretary, The Treasury
- Marama Fox, Co-leader, Māori Party
- Jamie Whyte, Author and Fellow, Institute of Economic Affairs
Wednesday, 20 April 2016
5.30pm – 6.00pm Arrival
6.00pm – 7.00pm Presentation Q&A
7.00pm – 8.00pm Drinks and nibbles
Mac’s Function Centre, 4 Taranaki Street, Ground Floor (Cable Room), Wellington.
Register for the free event here. Spaces are limited and will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis.
ENDS
About The New Zealand Initiative
The New Zealand Initiative is an evidence-based think tank and research institute, which is supported by a membership organisation that counts some of the country’s leading visionaries, business leaders and political thinkers among its ranks.
Our members are committed to developing policies to make New Zealand a better country for all its citizens. We believe all New Zealanders deserve a world-class education system, affordable housing, a healthy environment, sound public finances and a stable currency.
The New Zealand Initiative pursues this goal by participating in public life, and making a contribution to public discussions.
For more information visit www.nzinitiative.org.nz