Tuesday 4 October 2011

David 'fat tax' Cameron


"The beneficial effect of state intervention, especially in the form of legislation, is direct, immediate, and so to speak, visible, while its evil effects are gradual and indirect and lay out of sight ... Hence the majority of mankind must almost of necessity look with undue favor upon governmental intervention."
A. V. Dicey

Our Fűhrer has now stated that government will consider introducing a "fat tax" to tackle Britain's growing obesity levels as drastic action was needed to prevent health costs soaring and life expectancy falling. He also maintains that he is worried about the costs to the health service and obesity was on the verge of overtaking smoking and drinking as the biggest health challenge facing Britain. (and the statistics for this observation?) If he is worried about costs to the health service then perhaps he should turn his attention to the costs imposed on the health service by the influx of unlimited immigration from member states of the EU? Statistics from the ONS show the level of immigration to this country for the years 1991-2009 - draw your own conclusions.

From the NHS Information Centre we learn that obesity is on the increase and that in 2008 In 2008, almost a quarter of adults (24% of men and 25% of women aged 16 or over) in England were classified as obese (BMI 30kg/m2  or over) and that 16.8% of boys aged 2 to 15, and 15.2% of girls were classed as obese, an increase from 11.1% and 12.2% respectively in 1995. In respect of children was it not politicians who decided that physical activity (games, etc) were deemed harmful in case the little darlings hurt themselves? Was it not politicians who created a fear of children being vulnerable to paedophiles that in effect forced parents to ferry their children to school, rather than letting them walk?

It was Ronald Reagan who famously stated that the government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases, namely that if it moves, tax it; if it keeps moving regulate it and if it stops moving subsidize it. The suggestion by Cameron fits the first and second criteria and government appears to already be doing the third, as shown by a report in the Times, from 2007, which reports that two thousand people who are too fat to work have been paid a total of £4.4 million in benefits - numbers which will have no doubt increased since then.

That politicians would appear, over the last decade or so, to have spent part of their time attempting to order and regulate our society and the other part correcting their mistakes, proves that government should perhaps butt out of peoples lives as they obviously do not possess the ability to run a whelk stall, let alone people's lives.

Oh and on the subject of taxation Mr. Cameron, it should be noted that whilst it is said there cannot be taxation without representation, it needs to be pointed out that, as someone once said, taxation with representation ain't so hot either!

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's about time the BMI 'scale' was adjusted to be more realistic. At 6ft 2in tall my 'ideal weight' is around 12.5 stones. I was that weight when I was 16 years old, nearly 40 years ago.
Anyone complying with the BMI scale is (imho) inevitably far too skinny.
An adjustment to allow for a 'normal' persons frame would take hundreds of thousands OFF the obesity statistics.

TheBoilingFrog said...

Can we have an 'oxygen thief' tax? That way we can at least try to limit Cameron's pathetic protestations.

WitteringsfromWitney said...

Anon:: Agreed, last time I flew BM they tried to charge excess baggage!

Seriously, this weight/height ratio is a load of spheroids. I'm only 5'10 and hit the even bigger '70' next year and have never weighed more than 10 and a half stone. Last medical, doctor declared me as fit as someone 15 years younger - and I smoke! He called me in as, having registered 5 years ago and not having seen me he wanted to know who I was!

WitteringsfromWitney said...

TBF: Anything you like, if it just shuts him up!

Bill said...

Yet more proof, not that it were needed that this man is not of this earth.

He is behaving more and more like Nero with every passing day.

WitteringsfromWitney said...

Bill, Yup, as a politician we all know he is on the fiddle for personal gain!

Dick Puddlecote said...

Funny that the BBC had a puff piece on this idea just this morning. I can hear the twanging of strings being pulled by health lobbyists behind the scenes.

WitteringsfromWitney said...

DP: Forget to mention that - damn! Lets jusgt hope the strings get wrapped round their necks!

Autonomous Mind said...

I was wondering how long it would be before Camoron jumped on the bandwagon.

He is following the Swedes on this, no doubt seeing it as another chance to get some more of our money and extend the control of the state.

The man is so unoriginal it is time to call him Carbon Copy Dave.

WitteringsfromWitney said...

AM: Interesting, knew the danes were doing this, didn't know the Swedes had followed suite - will investigate further.....

Can we add 'carbon' to 'copy dave'? Is not adding carbon against EU directives? :)

Adam R. said...

Carbon Copy Dave? He won't like that name since it involves the word "Carbon". What a fat headed idiot he is, and I this is coming from someone living under Obama!

TomTom said...

Look at Cameron, both he and Osborne tends towards fat and puffy....it is personal, they need a sin tax to stop themselves from bloating. Cocaine is illegal but they can afford it, but if supermarkets and fast food can charge a tax and still fund the Tories, Dave and Gideon will know that gorging is good for the Exchequer and can fund even more foreign aid !

TomTom said...

FT Alphaville today:

Since the end of 2007, UK GDP has contracted cumulatively by 3.4% in spite of the great sterling depreciation as exports failed to recover, while Italian GDP has contracted by a bit more at 4.4%. Since late 2007, UK unit labour costs have increased by 9.5%; Italy’s by a more modest 7.6%. Most importantly, the weaker sterling has lowered imports as the UK got poorer through higher inflation. In 2007, the average Brit was 30% richer than the average Italian. This year (on Eurostat estimates), the average Brit will be just 5% richer than the average Italian.

So, living standards have been cut by devaluation but exports are not increasing and productivity is falling; yet Cameron lavishes all his attention on BANKS which are zombies like RBS eating the seedcorn

Anonymous said...

Trouble is, it's not fat that makes you obese, it's the low-fat, high carbohydrate diet that is so heavily promoted by "nutrition experts". Notice how the rise in obesity has gone hand in hand with the growth of "healthy options" in the supermarkets? Still, why let the facts get in the way of a good scam?

English Pensioner said...

Define Obesity! Its when someone weighs more that what some experts consider to be your "correct" weight. But on what basis do they come to this conclusion? Perhaps for years we've all been drastically under weight, and the present obese is in fact "normal".
And what about the outbreak of "Heightism". Everyone is far taller than they were in Medieval times (look at ceiling heights and old tombs). Why aren't they concerned about that?

Anonymous said...

99% of Camermong's fat resides between his ears.