Dental Health: Children

Baroness Jenkin of Kennington Excerpts

Tuesday 7th June 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

Schools clearly have an important role to play. Interestingly, in Bradford the Building Brighter Smiles programme involves not just a community-based fluoride varnishing application but also supervised tooth-brushing in schools and nurseries. I am sure that that has a very important role to play.

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Con)]

My Lords, the number one reason for primary school children to be admitted to hospital is for multiple tooth extraction as a result of poor diet and the other things that have been mentioned. These are children who generally do not drink water; they drink juice and fizzy drinks. Can my noble friend please confirm that the Government will give this a priority in the obesity strategy later this summer?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My noble friend will be aware that a part—only a part—of the obesity strategy includes a levy on fizzy drinks. That will be a levy on the manufacturer not the consumer. That is a very important part of trying to improve the diet of young children.

Obesity

Baroness Jenkin of Kennington Excerpts

Thursday 26th May 2016 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to tackle obesity.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Prior of Brampton) (Con)]

My Lords, tackling obesity, particularly in children, is one of our major priorities. The Government are developing a strategy that will look at everything that contributes to a child becoming overweight and obese. We plan to publish it this summer.

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Con)]

My Lords, I declare an interest as somebody who has been technically obese, so I am well aware how difficult is not only to lose the weight but to keep it off. Does my noble friend not agree that the solution is simple but not easy—that we should eat less and healthily and move more? If we do not do this and if the Government do not grip it, both the NHS and a substantial number of the population’s lives will collapse under the weight of the problem.

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, can I say to my noble friend that she looks far from obese today? She looks positively svelte. I agree that obesity is a massive problem facing the country. The chief executive of the NHS even referred to it as “the new smoking”. It causes not just diabetes but cancers and heart disease, so it is critical that we address it—and it is critical that we address it with people at a young age as it is much more difficult to lose weight later on in life.

Child Health: Play

Baroness Jenkin of Kennington Excerpts

Monday 12th October 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

I regret that I have not seen the report in the Daily Telegraph, so I cannot confirm or deny what was written in it. What I can say is that the Secretary of State regards the fact that one in five primary school-age children is now obese as being, in his words, a “great scandal”. The report on childhood obesity is due to be produced, I think, before the end of the year, and certainly within the next few months. I imagine that it will say that the problems are a combination of lack of exercise, lack of play and nutrition—but we will have to wait and see.

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Con)]

My Lords, I am not sure whether my noble friend saw the report recently of a primary school which has introduced a running challenge where the children run one mile every day, to enormous benefit both mental and physical. Following on from the Minister’s previous remarks about best practice, is this something that the department could encourage other schools to do?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

I wonder whether Members of this House might like to set an example in that regard as well by running a mile a day. There is no doubt that exercise is good for you. Not only is it good for all the problems associated with weight but there is plenty of evidence to suggest that exercise helps with mental health problems. Whether you are running or on your bike, I am wholly in favour of it.