Health ministry pushes for tobacco, soda tax legislation
Urges finance ministry to clear draft law
Pakistan
December 24, 2020
ISLAMABAD:
The federal health ministry has urged the federal finance ministry to clear the Federal Health Levy Bill so that it can be presented in the Parliament.
The bill seeks to impose a tax on tobacco and sugary drinks to boost revenue on one hand and to prevent the spread of non-communicable diseases caused by the consumption of such products.
In a letter to the federal finance ministry, Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Health Dr Faisal Sultan emphasized the need to charge Rs10 as health tax for every pack of 20 cigarettes on tobacco and Re1 for every 250 millilitres of carbonated drinks, as approved by the federal cabinet in June 2019.