The wheels are in motion to repeal the controversial sugar tax, but it may be a while before consumers notice the savings on their bills.

Newly-minted Premier John Hogan wasted little time in writing Finance Minister Siobhan Coady, requesting that the tax, which imposes a 20-cent per litre levy on sugary drinks, be repealed.

Hogan says the tax, which has brought in millions of dollars to government annually, will be removed to ease affordability.

The premier says it will take a while to adjust prices.

“So as for the when, this is the first official full day on the job, so it’ll take a little bit of time to work through legislative and regulatory mechanisms to see how we do it,” he told reporters on Monday.

He admits there are some logistics involved in how retailers remove the tax from their systems, “so the minister of finance needs some time to work with them.”