Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of reducing the rate of Value Added Tax on sunscreen, sunblock and other sun safety products.

The standard rate of VAT applies to the vast majority of goods and services, including sun safety products.

High-factor sunscreen is on the NHS prescription list for certain conditions and is therefore VAT free when dispensed by a pharmacist.

One of our reservations is that there is no guarantee any wider reduction in tax would be passed on to consumers, so while we keep all taxes under review, we have no plans to make changes.