Mr. Chris Macey:

Absolutely, and it has to be worked out. When the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland brought in restrictions on junk food marketing on broadcast media, there was a big debate around cheese and whether, because it is high in fat, it is a food that should be covered. We want to try to take that complexity out. We are not looking for the perfect tax here; we are looking for something that will be effective, especially in reducing levels of overweight and obesity. We want to try to target that top tier of the food pyramid, which contains confectionary, salty snacks, the high-sugar breakfast cereals aimed at children, sugary drinks - which is already being done - and fast food. They are called the big five driving high rates of overconsumption of fat, sugar and salt among children, which is what we want to target. There are ways of doing it. I totally accept it is complex, but it can be done.

There is a proposal in the UK at the moment to bring in a broad sugar tax as the next step. The commission is suggesting an ultra-processed food tax and that is likely to lead to much complexity and many difficulties with what is in and what is out. For example, baked beans are seen as an ultra-processed food, but they are also good for kids. They are high-sugar, but beans on toast is a good healthy meal for any of us. There is a lot of sugar in it, the beans are ultra-processed and there are issues around that, but we do not want to bring in things like that. We want to deal with something that will have an effect rather than get into too much difficulty around the complexities of it.