Liz Truss says Britain is suffering from an outbreak of 'neo-Puritanism' over food and drink

Britain is suffering from an outbreak of "neo-Puritanism" over food and drink, under which people are being treated like machines, a Cabinet minister has warned.

Liz Truss, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, criticised officials seeking to "command and control" the public with a "nannying tendency" that seeks to regulate or ban unhealthy products in order to reduce obesity.

In comments that appear at odds with the Government's own plans to tackle obesity, Ms Truss, the second in command at the Treasury, said: "I don't believe grown adults want their money spent telling them what to eat."

Ms Truss's intervention is contained within a collection of essays due to be published on Tuesday by Freer, a Conservative think tank she helped to launch last year.

It comes days after it emerged that Transport for London (TfL) banned an advertisement for the Wimbledon tennis tournament which featured strawberries and cream.

A contractor for TfL wrote in an internal email: "Can we just remove the cream?"

The Government has set out proposals to require restaurants and cafes to display calorie counts on their menus, as well as to ban television advertisements for products that are high in fat, salt or sugar, before the 9pm watershed, as part of its proposals to tackle obesity.

In her essay for Freer, which is supported by almost 30 Tory MPs, Ms Truss states: "For public officials judged by the outcomes in society, the urge can be strong to command and control. The assumption is that society is a machine where levers can be pulled, the handle can be cranked, and better results will ensue. So, there are calls to regulate or ban foods too high in sugar or fat, to reduce obesity. Or to end free speech on the internet.

"But people aren’t machines — they are agents of their own destiny. In Scotland, alcohol consumption has gone up despite the introduction of the minimum alcohol price. Years of focusing on low-fat diets didn’t work. Butter is enjoying a resurgence, after it turned out margarine wasn't a healthier choice after all."

Ms Truss, a former environment, food and rural affairs secretary, adds: "There's been a worrying outbreak of neo-puritanism in Britain, which I fear is in danger of holding us back. Instead of wagging our finger at people enjoying themselves and doing things differently, we should celebrate the potential of our freedom and individual choices to foster the new ideas that are going to shape the next century."

The Telegraph reported last year that Ms Truss had privately raised significant concerns about the Government proposals to require restaurants, cafes and fast food chains to include calorie counts on their menus.

She accused the Department of Health of significantly underestimating the potential cost for small businesses.  

Appearing to set out further, veiled criticism of such proposals, she states in the essay: "We've seen the growth of the nannying tendency, which wants to tell us ever more about how we should live our lives. There seems to be a huge competition to micromanage our lives — from what we consume in the media, to what we drink, and even what we eat.

"I don't believe grown adults want their money spent telling them what to eat. There's nothing wrong with people deciding to have a glass of wine or slice of pizza in their own home. Or even a sneaky can of mojito in public, provided you're not causing a disturbance."