Fine Gael has rubbished Government moves to consider a tax on fatty foods to curb the growth in obesity.
As the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health indicated it would hold hearings on the possibility of a "fat tax", Fine Gael dismissed the initiative.
The party's health spokeswoman, Ms Olivia Mitchell, linked the plan mooted by the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, with expenditure on treatment for diabetes patients.
She said: "Why is Fianna Fáil worrying about a fat tax when 10 per cent of the health budget is absorbed by complications from diabetes?
"We heard today that there was a 14-month waiting list for diabetes patients referred to Beaumont Hospital."
The committee, chaired by Mr Batt O'Keeffe of Fianna Fáil, plans to examine the links between the consumption of ready-to-eat meals, fast food and obesity.