Asked by: Laura Sandys (Conservative - South Thanet)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will introduce measures to reduce the sugar content of food modelled on those introduced to replace the salt content of food between 2003 and 2011.
Answered by Jane Ellison
Under the Government’s voluntary partnership with industry the focus is on overall calorie reduction, of which sugar can form a part. This has resulted in real progress in reducing calories.
The Scientific Advisory Committee Report on Nutrition has recently published their draft recommendations on Carbohydrates. The final report, together with recommendations from Public Health England on sugar in the diet is due next spring. This will inform the Government’s future thinking on sugar.
Asked by: Laura Sandys (Conservative - South Thanet)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to reduce sugar intake by the public.
Answered by Jane Ellison
We are working with industry to cut sugar and calories across a range of products, including fast food and fizzy drinks. We are also the first country in Europe to recommend simple voluntary front of pack labelling, which will help people to know how much sugar they are consuming. Businesses who have adopted front of pack labelling account for two-thirds of the packaged foods market.
Public Health England (PHE) is leading the way on helping people cut calories from sugar and other foods through the Change4Life campaign. PHE is also undertaking a review of the evidence on sugar in the diet and will make recommendations next spring.
Asked by: Laura Sandys (Conservative - South Thanet)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, to what extent responsibility for preventing the development of obesity and type 2 diabetes (a) has been devolved to Public Health England and (b) remains with his Department.
Answered by Jane Ellison
As steward of the health and care system, the Department sets national priorities, secures and allocates resources, supports our national bodies and holds them to account. The Department carries out this function for the prevention of obesity and diabetes. “Healthy Lives, Healthy People: A Call to Action on obesity in England” is the strategy by which this is delivered and I chair the Obesity Review Group which reviews and holds the system to account.
The delivery of national public health functions in this regard is the responsibility of Public Health England (PHE) including campaigns such as Change4Life, the National Child Measurement Programme and NHS Health Checks. PHE supports local authorities and the health system through making available evidence and information on the important role of tackling poor diets, physical inactivity and excess weight in both the primary prevention of diabetes and as part of disease management.
In addition NHS England has a key role to play on the prevention on obesity and diabetes. “Action for Diabetes”, published in January, sets out NHS England’s broad vision and direction for supporting improvements in outcomes for people with and at risk of diabetes in the coming years, both as a direct commissioner and by providing support to the commissioning system. The report is available at:
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/act-for-diabetes.pdf
“Living Well for Longer: National Support for Local Action to Reduce Premature Avoidable Mortality”, published in April, sets out the actions being taken across Government, PHE and NHS England to reduce premature avoidable mortality.
A copy of Living Well for Longer has already been placed in the Library and is also available at:
www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/307703/LW4L.pdf
Asked by: Laura Sandys (Conservative - South Thanet)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to which local authorities penalties have been issued for breaches of the Clean Air Act 1993 since May 2010.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
The Clean Air Act includes fines for various offences to be enforced by local authorities through the magistrate courts. It does not provide for enforcement on local authorities. As the regulators, records of these should be held by local authorities. There is no requirement in the Act for local authorities to notify Defra of fines levied. Therefore, the department does not hold data for offences recorded as issued by local authorities for companies or private individuals.
Asked by: Laura Sandys (Conservative - South Thanet)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how and to whom the pollution alert on ozone in Eastern England was distributed on 18 July 2014.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
Defra issued an air pollution alert to the public on 18 July this year due to levels of ozone measured at Sibton (189µgm3) and St Osyth (185µgm3) in Eastern England. The alert was issued when hourly measurements exceeded the ozone public information threshold of 180 µg/m3 (micrograms per metre cubed) as defined in the Air Quality Directive 2008/50/EC.
The alert was issued on Defra’s UK_Air website at:
http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/latest/alerts, and air quality Twitter feed @defraUKAir, giving details of the locations and measurements, as well as relevant health advice. Members of the public can also receive air quality information such as alerts by signing up to email bulletins at http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/subscribe.
Defra works closely with Public Health England to ensure information and health advice is provided to the public when pollution levels are elevated.
Asked by: Laura Sandys (Conservative - South Thanet)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which smoke control areas are currently designated in England and Wales.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
The power to designate smoke control areas under Part 3 of the Clean Air Act 1993 lies with local authorities as the regulators. Under the Act local authorities are required to publish details of the areas created in the London Gazette and their local newspapers prior to creating the associated smoke control orders. Therefore, the definitive lists of designated areas are held by individual local authorities.