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50 signatures reached
To: Finance Minister Godongwana
Tell Minister Godongwana to increase the Sugary Drinks Tax to 20%
A new Finance Minister gives us a new opportunity to demand the sugary drinks tax is increased to 20%, something his predecessor, Tito Mboweni failed to do.
Together we can bring Finance Minister Godongwana up to speed so that he understands that since 2017, in the lead up to nearly every budget speech and mid-term budget policy statement, members of the public have been calling on the Finance Minister and Treasury to increase the Sugary Drinks Tax (Health Promotion Levy) to 20% and/or include 100% fruit juices under the Sugary Drinks Tax. That’s 17,692 signatures and 395 public comments.
Why is this important?
Greedy companies want to stop the sugary drinks tax to protect their profits. Many of these same companies have a history of dishonesty which it comes to the economic impact of a tax on sugary drinks. The sugar industry has exaggerated their statistics when it comes to the claims they make about the Sugary Drinks Tax causing job losses when research from Trade and Industry Policy Strategies finds otherwise [1]. It’s clear that increasing the Sugary Drinks Tax to 20% could help improve our people's health. We have an opportunity to help achieve this goal. On the 11th of November, Finance Minister, Enoch Godongwana will be delivering the 2021 Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement. If enough of us come together, we can remind the Minister that he has the public support necessary to increase the Sugary Drinks Tax.
[1] SA’s proposed sugar tax: claims about calories & job losses checked: https://africacheck.org/fact-checks/reports/sas-proposed-sugar-tax-claims-about-calories-job-losses-checked