Sugar Tax Should Never Have Existed: Wakeham

St. John’s, NL (May 30, 2025) – Tony Wakeham, Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party and MHA for Stephenville – Port au Port, today responded to an update by the Liberals regarding the elimination of their regressive sugar tax that put an unnecessary financial burden on Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who are struggling with the high cost of living.

“Let me be clear, the sugar tax should never have been introduced. It is another example of poor decision-making by a government that has lost touch with reality,” said Wakeham. “Even worse, the Liberals don’t want to remove the sugar tax; they are being forced to do so because of mounting public and political pressure. If an election wasn’t imminent, we highly doubt the Liberals would scrap the tax.”

Wakeham said the Liberal government previously defended their sugar-sweetened beverage tax despite clear warnings that it would disproportionately impact low-income families and not achieve what it was intended to do.

“Sadly, it’s taken the pressure of a looming election for the Liberals to finally admit they were wrong,” said Wakeham. “We knew in 2021 when it was first announced that this policy was wrong. It was regressive, poorly designed, and drove up the cost of living. The key to modifying behaviors and encouraging healthier choices is education, not taxation.”

Wakeham said the timing of this reversal is no coincidence. “The Liberals are only removing the sugar tax now on the eve of a provincial election because I have been clear and consistent that we will eliminate it when we form government. The Liberals didn’t want this political liability hanging over their heads as they head into a campaign,” continued Wakeham.

While the government has now exempted all products covered by the tax through regulatory changes, effective July 1, the underlying legislation that enabled the tax remains in place.

“This isn’t full accountability. The Liberals didn’t repeal the law — they merely changed the regulations, which means a future cabinet could bring the tax back overnight without a vote in the House of Assembly,” added Wakeham. “We’re glad to see the tax gone; however, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians deserve certainty that it won’t come back. The only way to do that is to scrap the law altogether, and that’s what a future PC government will do.”

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