Barbados: Call for higher drinks tax

AS THE GOVERNMENT mulls over doubling the ten per cent tax on sugar-sweetened drinks, a former chairman of the Barbados Private Sector Association is contending that the tax needs to be much higher.
Businessman Alex McDonald is proposing that the measure increase to 50 per cent to help fight the non-communicable disease problem wreaking havoc on the country’s health care system. “Recently, the minister of finance started taxing sweet drinks. In my view it’s a good start but it’s not enough. Professor (Sir Henry) Fraser says tax at 20 per cent. “I say tax at 50 per cent because if you must drink these beverages, let the price reflect the cost of the care that we will ultimately have to give you downstream. (WILLCOMM) – See more at: http://www.nationnews.com/nationnews/news/96377/drinks-tax#sthash.rt6DQPP2.dpuf