Industry responses to the UK government’s public consultation on the proposed soft drinks industry levy: Qualitative documentary analysis using the framework method and a systems perspective

Abstract

The United Kingdom (UK) Chancellor of the exchequer announced a tax on sugar sweetened beverages in his March 2016 budget. A public consultation on the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL) was conducted before the levy’s implementation in 2018. We aimed to identify arguments that industry stakeholders made during the public consultation to influence the discursive environment using thematic framework analysis with a novel complex systems lens.Forty-two censored consultation responses from industry stakeholders (manufacturers, retailers, or representative trade associations) were obtained by Freedom of Information requests to Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs and Her Majesty’s Treasury. Industry stakeholders were overall opposed to the SDIL. Key themes included unintended consequences of the levy, denying the impact of the levy, the responsibility of government to industry over health, and proposals of alternative policies. Industry stakeholders created a discursive environment that showcased the complexity of business relationships in response to the levy, in contrast to linear causal arguments and simplistic solutions (e.g., consumer education). Documented industry discursive strategies were engaged, including promoting voluntary agreements, use of industry commissioned research, and questioning the effectiveness of the policy.Industry stakeholders’ submissions presented opposition to an evidence-based policy and use of documented industry discursive strategies emphasised the need for a pro-active and transparent consultation process and stakeholder management. A complex systems approach, alongside robust evidence, can identify changing relationships and adaptations in response to a policy, and pre-empt industry positioning in future health policymaking by identifying areas of push-back in advance to allow better stakeholder management.