In support of the launch of our new Local Government Position Statement, the Obesity Health Alliance (OHA), in collaboration with 88 leading health charities, campaign groups, medical royal colleges, local organisations and the thousands of healthcare professionals, patients, and citizens they represent, has today issued an open letter to the Prime Minister. We are calling for full delivery of the proposed planning system reforms to empower local councils to reduce health inequalities and make the places they represent healthier.[i]
With local leaders across the country, especially those serving deprived areas, keen to create healthier communities but often lack the necessary authority and resources, charities, organisations, and local health champions have thereby supported OHA’s proposals to make real improvements to people’s health and lives by:[ii]
- Making healthier places a priority in national planning guidance
- Restricting outdoor advertising to allow only healthier food and drink options
- Shielding local authorities from powerful commercial influences
- Restoring the Public Health Grant with a £1.5 billion uplift
- Supporting the creation of Local Food Partnerships
- Ensuring the full, supportive, delivery of the National Child Measurement Programme
This comes as a new YouGov poll of 2,273 UK adults revealed strong public support for these measures. Seventy percent (70%) of respondents would support a ban on the advertising of unhealthy food within 400 meters of schools and playgrounds, and over half (52%) support a ban on any new hot food takeaways from opening in the same area.[iii]
Furthermore, half of the country believes that childhood obesity rates will remain unchanged under the current government (50%), and almost a quarter (24%) expect them to increase. This presents a significant challenge for the government in convincing the public that they can effectively bring about meaningful change forour youngest citizens.
While the government has recently initiated a consultation on how the planning system can better address health inequalities and obesity, particularly concerning hot food takeaways near schools, campaigners are urging the government to implement these changes fully. [iv] This is a crucial first step in empowering local communities to create healthier environments.
Action to prevent diet-related ill health is crucial to fulfilling the government’s missions to boost economic growth and build a future-ready NHS.
This is particularly significant given that obesity currently costs the NHS over £6.5 billion annually, with broader economic costs reaching £98 billion. It is also a major contributor to the number of people leaving the workforce due to illness.
Katharine Jenner, Director of the Obesity Health Alliance, comments;
“Every child deserves access to affordable, convenient, and nutritious food. However, high streets are flooded with unhealthy food and drink options, aggressively marketed in ways that limit free choice. Since 2016, the number of children and young adults diagnosed with type 2 diabetes has increased by nearly 40%, fueled by rising levels of excess weight. Successfully implementing the government’s Child Health Action Plan would be a significant achievement, with the essential first step of giving local places the power to create healthier, active local communities for our children.”
Darrell Gale, spokesperson for Healthy Places for the Association of Directors of Public Health adds:
“Consumption of unhealthy food and drink is not a result of personal choice. The reality is that people don’t have the freedom to choose. Instead, they are forced by circumstances to buy cheaper, less healthy alternatives, bombarded by advertising and marketing, and are unable to access active transport, open spaces, or affordable leisure options. Only by creating healthier environments, where people have better access to the things we need to live healthier lives for longer, can we hope to address this inequity.”
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Notes to editors
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[i] OHA Open Letter to the Prime Minister. 12.09.24
[ii] OHA Local Government Position Statement 12.09.24
[iii] YouGov / Obesity Health Alliance Survey Results , Sample Size: 2273 UK Adults, Fieldwork: 15th – 16th August 2024
[iv] The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Open consultation. Proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and other changes to the planning system