Charities urge government to take greater action in achieving the goals of the Childhood Obesity Plan

Ahead of the Prime Minister’s imminent plans to address obesity in the UK, Action on Sugar, Action on Salt and 47 leading health charities, including HENRY, and researchers representing both the treatment and prevention of obesity, are urging Mr Johnson to implement all outstanding recommendations previously committed to in Chapters 1, 2 and 3 of the Government’s Childhood Obesity Plan. 

Action on Sugar and Action on Salt’s traffic light Scorecard 2020: The road to preventing obesity analyses the Government’s commitments against progress of the three chapters, finding that  many of the core recommendations aimed at improving the lives of both children and adults living with obesity - such as calorie reduction targets and clearer nutrition labels on food and drink products - have disappointingly been side lined and are stuck at the traffic lights.

For the Prime Minister’s new obesity plan to be effective and change the health trajectory of future generations, a robust and joined up policy package is required, including the vital 9pm watershed to limit advertising and marketing of less healthy food across all media platforms, allowing families to see more of the products that are good for them. 

Prime Minister, we are all agreed: only you can ensure progress on this leading plan and secure a healthy future for the next generation. The time has come to give the Childhood Obesity Plan the green light.

You can read our letter in full here