Health: Economic Inactivity

Lord Wallace of Saltaire Excerpts

Thursday 18th May 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

The noble Baroness raises an important point, and I am aware of those surveys. I am always happy to meet her.

[Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD)]

My Lords, is the Minister aware that, when I was on the cardiac ward of St Thomas’ some years ago, almost all of the other men were there because of complications of diabetes. The scale of the diabetes and obesity crises—they are linked—is one of the major problems of poor health in our workforce. Unless we have a more coherent food strategy—the noble Baroness, Lady Boycott, suggested this—encouraging people to eat more wisely and perhaps increasing the regulation of food, we will not solve some of these problems of poor health in our workforce. Does the Minister agree?

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

I am pleased to see that the noble Lord made a fulsome recovery. He is exactly right: obesity is a global issue in the western world, and it leads to health complications that put huge pressures on our NHS.