Caroline Lucas is wrong – a meat tax would only hurt the poor | Poppy Noor

We need to tackle the climate crisis, but this regressive proposal doesn’t challenge unethical practices such as factory farmingCaroline Lucas called for a meat tax last week, something the environment secretary, Michael Gove, has suggested is the worst example of a nanny state. He is wrong. The idea isn’t authoritarian, it’s regressive. Like other proposals to impose taxes on dangerous products to save people from themselves, it is well intentioned. But the inevitable consequence is that poor people will suffer.This is by no means an argument that meat is good for people, or even necessarily cheaper. Red meat is associated with a host of health issues such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes, and chefs such as Jack Monroe have shown how people can eat healthy, vegan meals on a tight budget. But to incentivise behaviour by making things more expensive is to say that the rich can do whatever they please while the poor should go without. The weight of environmentally conscious decisions falls on those who can’t afford to pay rather than on society as a whole. It’s reverting to 18th-century rules: the poor can eat beans, while the rich eat meat. Choice becomes something only the rich deserve. Continue reading…
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