Sugary treats could be banned from the city’s sports centres
SUGARY drinks and food should be banned from all sports centres in Coventry, a health scrutiny board at the city council has recommended.
Cllr Ed Ruane put forward the suggestion to ensure the city council promotes “a healthy environment” for youngsters who attend the facilities.
Speaking at a meeting on Wednesday, October 30, he said: “We grant fund the sports foundation and sports trust in the region of £1million.
“If prevention is really at the heart of everything we do, it just seems really odd that we continue to sell the quantity of sugary food in what should be a healthy environment.
“I know Scotland is doing it and various other local authorities are doing it.
“We gift them in the region of a million pounds a year. I think we can put strings attached to that on the basis of you will continue to get this funding but this can’t be happening.
“We have brought in changes around hot-food takeaways not being a certain distance to schools, yet facilities which are actually paid by us you can still walk in and get as many sugary drinks and snacks as you want.
“If the response is, we need to make a profit out of this, then they need to come out and say that. This is not about creating a healthy environment, it is about profits, and that’s what needs to change.”
Publicly funded leisure centres in all Scottish local authorities banned the sale of high-energy soft drinks to young people under the age of 16 this year.
Director of Public Health Liz Gaulton said she would welcome the move in Coventry, but she added: “If you want we can make a declaration at the council to be a sugary-free council, it will have some impact.
“But I do believe it is more complex than that and we need to be working with partners on it.”
Cllr Hazel Sweet branded it a “damn good idea in the sense of it” but also urged caution, suggesting a blanket ban could impact on profits made by sports centres - and in turn the “viability” of their business.
She added: “We need to be mindful of seeing what other things we can put in place to recoup the loss in profit on the sugary drinks, other than having to increase fees and memberships which takes it out of the pockets of a lot of people.
“It is not just a question of a blanket ban as if kids can’t get the sugary drinks there, let’s face it they will bring it with them. We have to educate an alternative so they do not want it.”