Time for a tax on sugar here?
The whole idea was to cut the consumption of sugar, something we have just as much need to do here, given that our rates of obesity are on a par with those in Britain - an outrage that will prevent many of us living long lives.
Up to one third of us are obese, another third are overweight. Thirty years ago it was 10 per cent. If you don't think that's shortening lives, ask my colleague, Peter FitzSimons. He says everyone he sees aged over 75 is thin. Their heavier contemporaries are dead.
A single can of cola has nine teaspoons of sugar in it. Other drinks have 13 teaspoons - more than double the recommended daily intake.
"I am not prepared to look back at my time here in this parliament doing this job, and say to my children's generation: 'I'm sorry, we knew there was a problem with sugary drinks, we knew it caused disease, but we ducked,'" he said.
The rate would be zero for drinks with 5 grams or less of sugar per 100 millilitres, meaning some would stay tax-free, including Schweppes Lemonade, Tesco Lemonade and Lucozade Sport. It'd be heavier for drinks with between 5 and 8 grams of sugar. Among them were Fanta, Sprite and Dr Pepper. And it would be high for drinks with more than 8 grams, such as Coke, Pepsi and Red Bull.
The universal truth about tax is that people don't like paying it. It can be put to good use.
$14 million in income tax cuts, grants to industries and increases in pensions and benefits. By taxing "bads", she was able to cut taxes on "goods".