Theresa May has pushed out food reforms, says celebrity chef Oliver
food reforms were “blown up” by Brexit and then pushed out by Prime Minister Theresa May, celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has said.
He called on the UK government to take a “sterner” approach to tackling childhood obesity, and called for a ban on TV junk food advertising to be extended to 9pm.
Oliver said he had been getting his “hands dirty” by trying to change eating habits in the UK.
He gave evidence alongside fellow campaigning chef Hugh Fearnley-whittingstall to MPS on the health and social care committee yesterday.
Oliver has previously faced criticism over comments he made about families eating chips and cheese out of Styrofoam containers in front of a large television. Asked about the remarks, he said: “I’ve learnt a lot in 15 years and when I talk to a lot of people I have tried very, very hard to get my hands dirty.”
Oliver had pushed for former prime minister David Cameron to introduce reforms to tackle childhood obesity.
He said: “What we need is an environmental change where everyone does their bit – civic, government, business, the home.
“I worked with Mr Cameron within his group to formulate chapter one, which, of course, with Brexit and everything that happened got blown up. Mrs May took over [and] they pushed it out.”