Health Secretary outlines non-regulatory approach for food and alcohol industry

The Health Secretary Andrew Lansley has outlined a Public Health approach of 'social responsibility, not state regulation' in respect of issues such as junk food and alcohol consumption. In a speech to a Faculty of Public Health conference, Lansley suggested the role of the Government in health campaigns would be reduced but that the industry would be 'pressed' to take a larger role:

"There has been a change of Government and there will now be a change of approach. We will be progressively scaling back the amount of taxpayers’ money spent on Change4Life and asking others, including the charities, the commercial sector and local authorities, to fill the gap."

Lansley spoke of a new "...'responsibility deal', 'built on social responsibility, not state regulation" which meant an approach of 'encouraging positive choices not lecturing or nannying.' But representatives from health bodies spoke out accroding to news reports (see below). Tam Fry, of the National Obesity Forum said he was "horror-struck" whilst a British Heart Foundation spokerperson said  "...parents and children [will] continue to be faced with the bewildering kaleidoscope of confusing food labels and pre-watershed junk food ads."

• 'Andrew Lansley: Occasional Mars bar is fine if overall diet is good' The Telegraph
• 'No anti-junk food laws, health secretary promises' The Guardian
• 'Food firms take over anti-obesity campaign' The Independent 

Comments

[niall]

Tories in 'doing what big business wants and ignoring the consequences' shock.