Govt urged to prioritise sun safety as NHS spends £2m daily on skin cancer

A skin cancer survivor has vowed to not stop fighting until the Government makes a change which could help save millions of lives. Jessica Zbinden-Webster was diagnosed with the disease at 26 years after what she thought was an innocuous-looking lesion turned out to be a tumour.

Thankfully, after an operation to remove the tumour, which involved cutting out one of her lower eyelids while she was awake, a skin graft, and four ocular surgeries, she is now cancer-free. But the same cannot be said for thousands of people across the UK. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in this country, and statistics show it's on the rise. In fact, Cancer Research UK states that since the early 1990s, melanoma skin cancer incidence rates have increased by 164%.

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our Privacy Policy

Ms Zbinden-Webster says that up to 90% of skin cancer cases could be prevented with sunscreen use.

Despite this, a 20% VAT rate is charged on the products, adding around £1.50 to the cost of an average bottle.

The Londoner has been campaigning for several years to try and get successive governments to remove this tax, and will be taking her petition, which has nearly 100,000 signatures, to Downing Street on Monday.

She said: “This disease is avoidable in the majority of cases just by using sunscreen regularly. And yet, sunscreen is classed as a cosmetic product and, is subject to a heavier tax levy than the likes of Jaffa Cakes.

“This not only makes sunscreen less affordable in a cost-of-living crisis, but sends a damaging message about the importance of sun safety to our public health.”

She says Britons are being taxed at both ends of the crisis - first through having to pay 20% VAT on sunscreen and then on taxes which go towards the NHS to treat the cancer which could have been prevented if sunscreen had been used.

The 34-year-old says the NHS spends more than £2m every day treating skin cancer, a cost which would be reduced if there were fewer cases of the disease.

Ms Zbinden-Webster has support from MPs across the political spectrum on this issue. And a report by a cross-party inquiry in May backed her campaign, and said that UV overexposure is a preventable public health crisis.

So she is hopeful that Andy Burnham’s Government will agree to the change.

She said: “My message to him and the Treasury would be that prevention is better than cure. Prevention is cheaper than cure, and prevention is kinder than cure.

“I'm hoping that between me handing my petition in on Monday and the Budget this autumn, the Treasury officials will have knocked their heads together and realised that we can't go on taxing preventative healthcare.

“Our skin cancer crisis is out of control, and this government must be the government to fix it.”

A Government spokesperson said: “As part of our 10-year plan to reform the health service, and through a national cancer plan, we will fight cancer on all fronts, from prevention to diagnosis, treatment, and research.

“High-factor sunscreen is on the NHS prescription list for certain conditions and is already provided VAT-free when dispensed by a pharmacist to these patients.”