VAT needs to be scrapped on sunscreen to make it more affordable, according to several UK cancer charities.
As sunscreen is classified as a cosmetic product it carries a 20% tax, which adds around £1.50 to the price of each bottle.
Charities want the government to exempt high-factor protective creams because cases of sun related skin cancers are on the rise in the UK.
Scottish National Party MP Amy Callangan is leading the campaign for change. She was diagnosed with melanoma when she was 19. She said if people can’t afford to turn on their heating, they aren’t going to buy expensive items such as sunscreen. Callangan explained: “That’s why we must make sunscreen more affordable, by removing VAT.”
Interestingly, high factor sunscreen is on the NHS prescription list in certain cases and can be provided VAT free when dispensed by pharmacists to these patients.
