TOBACCO TAXES of at least 75% of the retail price should be devoted to financing sustainable development programs, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
“Additional revenue and fiscal space generated through higher tobacco taxes would help governments raise resources to meet various social and economic needs, such as increasing COVID-19 vaccination coverage, enhancing social protection measures and strengthening health systems to protect poor and vulnerable people and build resilience against future pandemics,” the UNDP said in a policy brief.
“It is critical to ensure that tobacco tax increases are translated into higher prices by monitoring and regulating manipulative pricing strategies by the tobacco industry,” it added.“Studies show that over time there is likely a net gain rather than a loss in employment in nearly all countries that raise tobacco excise rates,” the UNDP said, citing the World Bank.
The UNDP said that strengthening governance over tobacco controls is a “critical determinant of implementing bold pro-poor tobacco tax policies.” Revenue from sin taxes hit P332.3 billion in 2020 and is expected to hit at least P480 billion by 2024, according to estimates by the Department of Finance .
“Tobacco taxation is a possible source of government revenue but the acceleration of sustainable development goals progress will depend on how the tax revenue will be redistributed to the people,” John Paolo R. Rivera, an economist at the Asian Institute of Management, said in a Viber message.
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