Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role of physical activity in tackling health (1) improvement, and (2) disparities.

The Department, under the guidance of Chief Medical Officer (CMO), has assessed the role of physical activity in improving health and tackling disparities, and has laid this out in the revised 2019 CMO guidelines for physical activity.

Physical activity can contribute to managing and reducing the risk of chronic conditions, including some cancers, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and depression. Physical activity can also help maintain a healthy weight and support weight loss when combined with a dietary intervention.

There are inequalities in physical activity, for example people living with disabilities or long-term health conditions, and so universal and targeted action can support these groups get more active.

The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities is committed to enabling a systems approach to improve physical activity levels. This includes promoting the CMO guidelines for physical activity, and the national framework for action on physical activity ‘Everybody active, every day’.