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!