Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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97. To ask the Minister for Finance when he envisages a new tax on sugar drinks will be introduced; the estimated annual yield from such a tax; the rate at which he considers the new tax should be set and the types of drinks included within its scope; the preparation currently being undertaken by his Department in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34107/16]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The Programme for a Partnership Government commits to the introduction of a tax on sugar-sweetened drinks (SSDs). The tax will contribute towards important public health goals, as well providing a new source of revenue for public spending. The Department of Health has also supported the introduction of a tax on SSDs in order to reduce added-sugar in diets, particularly the diets of children and young people.  The proposed tax on SSDs is seen as just one measure in the Department of Health's comprehensive plan to tackle obesity in Ireland.

Sugar-sweetened drinks taxes have been introduced in a number of European countries in recent years. The UK is due to introduce a soft-drinks industry levy from April 2018. On Budget day I said that given the highly integrated production and supply chains which exist in the soft drinks industry between Ireland and the United Kingdom,  it would be prudent to align the Irish sugar-sweetened drinks tax with the UK's tax proposal, in terms of timeframe and structure. I also launched a public consultation process on Budget day to get the views of all stakeholders in order to ensure that, when introduced, the tax is as effective as possible, as fair as possible, and minimises the administrative burden on business. That public consultation process is currently underway and will be open to submissions until 3 January 2017.

The estimated yield from the tax on SSDs will depend on the eventual design.  The Genral Excises Tax Strategy Group (TSG) paper 2016 examines options around an SSD tax and potential estimated yields. Both the General Excises TSG paper and the Public Consultation paper are available on my Department's website.