SHOP BAN TO PROTECT KIDS

New bid to halve childhood obesity

A TOTAL ban on shops selling energy drinks to children could be brought in as part of plans to tackle obesity in kids.

Compulsory calorie labelling, an end to unhealthy products at checkouts, and a 9pm watershed on junk food ads are also among new Government proposals.

The measures, aimed at halving childhood obesity by 2030, were greeted as “bold” and “ambitious”.

But campaigners warned the plans must be followed through on.

“It is near impossible to shield children from exposure to unhealthy foods,” said Health and Social Care Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

“It’s our job to give parents power to make healthier choices, and to make their life easier. The cost of obesity is too great to ignore.”

The Government said it will launch consultations on a range of measures by the end of the year. They include reducing “pester power” by stopping supermarkets from displaying unhealthy foods at checkouts and entrances, plus stopping products high in fat, sugar and salt being included in buy-oneget-one-free deals.

Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer for England, said the proposals would help children live healthier lives and support parents.

Health campaigners have reacted positively to the measures, after blasting the “watered-down” first chapter when it was published two years ago.

Caroline Cerny, of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: “If implemented, they have real potential to ensure that children in the UK face the healthy future they deserve.”

Labour’s shadow health and social care secretary Jonathan Ashworth called for “bold action, not another watered-down, lame duck strategy”.

His party has called for a fourpoint plan to reduce obesity by the end of the Parliament, putting kids’ health before “big business”.

Barbara Crowther, of the Children’s Food Campaign, said: “We fully support the Government’s intentions on junk food promotions and marketing, but the consultations to come will be crucial.

“A commitment to consider is not a commitment to act, and children’s health needs decisive action.”