Obesity

Lord Lang of Monkton Excerpts

Thursday 26th May 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

I completely agree with the noble Baroness. Integrated care organisations and accountable care organisations, although similar, will bring together in one pool the money for preventing as well as for curing disease—and will bring in social care as well. That should lead to a much better, more joined-up and more cost-effective way of delivering health and social care.

[Lord Lang of Monkton (Con)]

My Lords—

[Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve (CB)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[The Lord Privy Seal (Baroness Stowell of Beeston) (Con)]

We definitely have time for two more questions. If we are going round in turns, it is the turn of my noble friend Lord Lang—and then, I am sure, we can come to the noble Baroness.

[Lord Lang of Monkton]

My Lords, I wonder whether my noble friend can help me. We used to be told that we should not eat salt; now we are told we should. We used to be told that we should not eat fatty foods; now we are told we should. We used to be told that one glass of red wine a day was good for us; then we were told we should have none. Now we are being told we should have two. Will my noble friend tell us which of these items should exit our diet and which should remain?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My noble friend makes a very good point. He is as confused about this as most of us are in this House. A very important part of the obesity strategy, when it is announced later in the summer, will be to address this very clearly. All the evidence from more than 600 separate studies reinforces the advice that is already out there from Public Health England, but it has been very muddied over the last five days.