The first, but not the last.

The Government will consider introducing a ”fat tax” to tackle Britain’s growing levels of obesity, David Cameron said today.

The Prime Minister said drastic action was needed to prevent health costs soaring and life expectancy falling…

The [Danish] levy is targeting high-fat products such as butter, milk, cheese, pizza, meat, oil and processed food in a bid to improve health.

Danish consumers have criticised the step, while retailers have complained about excessive bureaucracy.

When the Today show did a piece on this a few days ago, some of the panelists actually applauded at the idea. As much as it annoys me, I think I’ve been conditioned at this point to appreciate such relatively mild nannyism. For one thing, it’d be nice to have Congress trying to mess with people’s health for once via a power that it actually does have under the Constitution. And given that the very worst nannies here at home seem to prefer outright bans on unhealthy foods, a wrist slap in the form of a small tax on stuff that tastes good almost seems to be an act of mercy. I hope poor people in Denmark are grateful that they can’t afford some of the simplest, most satisfying pleasures in life now.

Exit question: Will the tax work? (Exit answer: Does it ever?)