Ravi Mal

Milkshakes and lattes will be hit by a sugar tax for the first time as Labour moves to extend the levy in a bid to tackle obesity and improve the nation’s health   Wes Streeting, the health secretary, will tell the Commons **tomorrow** that the government will end the exemption for milk-based drinks from the tax on sugary drinks. The present laws have mainly affected fizzy drinks   It will also lower the threshold for the levy to hit more sugary drinks amid concerns in government that some companies are effectively gaming the system   Pre-packaged milkshakes and coffees will be covered by the levy while the government will also lower the sugar content threshold at which the tax applies in a move that will hit more popular brands   It's a highly unusual move - a Budget measure being unveiled in the Commons the day before the Budget itself. @benrileysmith revealed it was coming earlier this month   In 2016 George Osborne, the Conservative chancellor, announced the levy on drinks with a sugar content of more than 5g of sugar per 100ml, a threshold which led to numerous brands reformulating products to avoid the tax.   This was hailed a success by campaigners, and resulted in the sugar content of soft drinks falling by 46 per cent, but officials now say that “the levy effectively created a ‘target’ of just below the 5g threshold, and products have clustered below 5g as a result”. The government will lower the threshold in a bid to hit more drinks.   Brands such as Rubicon, Lucozade, Fanta, Ribena, Old Jamaica Ginger Beer and IrnBru all had sugar content reduced just below the 5g minimum