Sugary drink tax Sugary drink tax A sugary drink tax or soda tax is a tax or surcharge designed to reduce consumption of drinks with added sugar. Drinks covered under a soda tax often include carbonated soft drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks. The tax is a matter of public debate in many countries and beverage producers like Coca-Cola often oppose it. Advocates such as national medical associations and the World Health Organization promote the tax as an example of Pigovian taxation, aimed to discourage unhealthy diets and offset the growing economic costs of obesity. Type II diabetes is a growing health concern
Tax avoidance UK, which recommended that the UK should introduce such a rule, which was introduced in 2013. The rule prevents the reduction of tax by legal arrangements, where those arrangements are put in place purely to reduce tax, and would not otherwise be regarded as a reasonable course of action. Following the Panama Papers leak, "Private Eye", "The Guardian" and other British media outlets noted that Edward Troup, who became executive chair of HM Revenue and Customs, worked with Simmons & Simmons in 2004 representing corporate tax havens and opposed the GAAR in 1998. One historic example of tax avoidance still