The Government crackdown on the obesity crisis explained

Were you paying attention to the Budget yesterday? Don’t worry if not because I have highlighted all of the key points for you here.

One of the biggest changes announced by the chancellor was the sugar tax on sugary drinks. 

Full details of the new rules are yet to be announced but Chancellor outlined initial proposals for a two-tier levy on all producers and importers of drinks that have more than five grammes of sugar per 100 millilitres, or eight grammes at the higher rate.

The new law will be introduced in two years to give manufacturers time to put things in place. Pure fruit juices will be excluded from the new law.

The tax will suposively raise £520m in its first year. This money will be used to fund initiatives for children’s health and support school sport and other extra curricular sport activities, which I personally think is a great idea and a good way of getting children more acitive.

According to research outlined in yesterday’s Budget, a shocking one in ten children in England are obese when they start primary school, rising to two in ten by the time they leave, and these figures are growing higher among adults which I can understand is a problem.

Obesity-related diseases are estimated to cost the NHS £5bn a year, while the economy loses as much as £28bn. But will increasing the price of sugary drinks really make too much of a difference on these figures? Time will tell.

Health experts and charities are wlcoming the change but what do you think? A genius step in the right direction or just a pointless exercise? Let me know your thoughts and join my poll below!

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