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Sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) taxes are present in many countries with evidence that they are effective in decreasing purchases of SSBs. However, in Australia where SSB consumption per capita is high, and calls for an SSB tax are frequent, there is no SSB tax and policymakers have stated their lack of support for such a tax. We examined whether political party voting preference and sociodemographic factors affect individuals' support for an SSB tax, and whether message framing affects this support. A nationally representative sample of 1519 Australian adults was recruited for an online experimental survey. Three persuasive frames and one control frame were randomly provided to participants and measures of agreement towards an SSB tax were assessed. Sociodemographic factors and political party preference were also captured. Message framing had minimal effect on the level of support for the tax. However, participants who received the 'supportive of food and drink companies frame' showed the highest positive feelings towards the tax, and participants in rural areas had higher levels of support for an SSB tax when receiving the 'protecting teenagers' frame. Participants who voted for conservative (right-leaning) parties and for Labour (a centre-left party) had similar levels of support towards the tax, which was considerably lower than Greens voters. Undecided voters had the lowest levels of support for the tax, and the frames had limited impact on them. These findings highlight the potential role of message framing in shaping public support for an SSB tax in Australia, particularly in the context of voting preference and sociodemographic factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intensification of efforts by state and nonstate actors to address issues affecting global health has produced a patchwork of transnational regulatory governance. Within this field, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are expected to perform authoritative roles in holding business actors to account and enhance the democratic legitimacy of institutions via their participation in governance processes. While there exists a large body of conceptual and empirical research on global business regulation and private authority, we surprisingly know little about the governance functions of NGOs engaged in influencing the practices of corporations that produce health-harming commodities. This knowledge gap is especially pronounced in the issue area of noncommunicable diseases. This article begins to address this gap by mapping the networks of NGOs that engage in regulatory activities (rule-setting, monitoring, and enforcement) related to the (ultra)processed food and alcohol industries. We identify the networks of NGOs involved in global policy making across health, regulatory standards, and multistakeholder initiatives using nonstate actor submissions to consultations held by World Health Organization, UN Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), and the UN Global Compact. This paper examines NGO governance functions and their patterns of engagement and participation across institutional spheres. Overall, the article makes a twofold contribution to existing debates. First, we identify the governance functions through which NGOs attempt to hold corporations to account, contrasting their "watchdog" function with other governance functions. Second, we examine the representation of NGOs, highlighting asymmetries in participation of NGOs in the Global North and South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is unknown about commercial lobbying is far greater than what is known. These omissions distort our understanding of the extent and nature of business influence on politics. Especially when businesses engage in practices that harm health, it is crucial for public health advocates to understand corporate lobbying to counter its influence. Our study proceeded in three phases. First, based on an international audit, we developed a list of the categories of information about lobbying that could be disclosed under four groups (lobby firms, lobbyists, organizations and activities) and benchmarked Australian lobbyist registers against this list. Second, we manually extracted data from lobbyist registers in eight jurisdictions, cleaned the data and created a relational model for analysis. Finally, we classified a sample of organizations as public health organizations or harmful industries to compare their activities. We identified 61 possible categories of information about lobbying in international lobbyist registers. When applied to Australian lobbyist registers, Queensland covered the widest range of categories (13, 21%), though many lacked detail and completeness. Australian lobbyist registers provided data on 462 third-party lobby firms across Australia, currently employing 1036 lobbyists and representing 4101 organizations. Several of these represented harmful industries, with gambling interests hiring the most third-party lobby firms. Ultimately, Australian lobbyist registers do not provide enough information to understand the full extent of lobbying activities taking place. Political transparency is important for public health actors to be able to monitor corporate political activity and to protect policy-making from vested interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alcohol labelling laws and policy are contentious and highly politicized. Very few countries have been able to implement health warnings on alcohol labels due to complex legal and governance systems and coordinated industry lobbying. In 2020, Australia and New Zealand implemented a mandatory and evidence-based legal standard for pregnancy warning labels on alcohol products. This article discusses some of the challenges faced in achieving policy change and how these barriers were overcome by public health advocacy groups to build the evidence, counter industry conflicts of interest, consumer test health messages, mobilize community support and gather political support. Reflecting on the decades of ineffective regulation and politicization of this health issue, lessons for other countries include the importance of creating and maintaining relationships with decision makers and regularly updating them with evidence and recommendations, highlighting industry failures and tactics, building broad-based coalitions and sharing lived-experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This case study describes the delivery and achievements of the public health nutrition programme in Queensland, Australia, over more than three decades. Analysis of publicly available documents related to statewide nutrition policy and programmes from 1983 to 2014 identified key inputs and programme impacts and outcomes, including an increase in fruit and vegetable intake by 1.1 serves per person per day and rates of exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months quadrupled. Mapping factors and milestones against a framework on determinants of political priority highlighted correlation with effective nutrition promotion policy and practice. Identified enablers included the influence of policy champions and advocates, quality of governance, focus on whole-of-population approaches, and periods of political will and economic prosperity. Key barriers included changes of ideology with government leadership; lack of commitment to long-term implementation and evaluation; and limited recognition of and support for preventive health and nutrition promotion. The case study shows that a coordinated, well-funded, intersectoral approach to improve nutrition and prevent chronic disease and malnutrition in all its forms can be achieved and produce promising impacts at state level, but that sustained effort is required to secure and protect investment. Political support for long-term investment in nutrition is essential to reduce the high cost of all diet-related diseases. Public health leadership to better prepare for risks around political cycles, secure adequate resources for evaluation, and better communicate impacts and outcomes may help protect future investments and achievements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]