Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 May 2013
679. Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor asked the Minister for Health if he has considered the recent U.K report by the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges on tackling obesity; his plans to adopt any of its ten recommendations for healthcare professionals, local and national government, industry and schools which it believes will help tackle the nation’s obesity crisis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24332/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Deputy will be aware that I established a Special Action Group on Obesity (SAGO) to take forward priority actions to tackle obesity. I have considered the recent U.K report by the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges on tackling obesity and have referred the ten recommendations for health-care professionals, local and national government, industry and schools to SAGO to discuss at their June meeting and report back to me with their recommendations for action.
SAGO is already concentrating on a range of measures including Calorie posting in restaurants; Healthy Eating Guidelines, including the Food Pyramid; Sugar Sweetened Drinks Tax; Marketing of Food and Drink to Children; Treatment Algorithms; Opportunistic Screening and Monitoring; Vending Machines in Schools and a Physical Activity Plan. SAGO is also currently looking at ways of reducing food consumption from the top shelf of the food pyramid, in accordance with this Department's Healthy Eating Guidelines.
Healthy Ireland, a Framework for Improved Health and Well-being, forms the basis of how a whole-of-government and whole of society approach to health and well-being will be delivered. It sets out 64 actions under a number of thematic areas which provide for the development of inter-sectoral and cross government plans to address risk factors and social determinants of health. It provides a structured mechanism to engage all different sectors of society to channel measures and actions around individual health and lifestyle issues, and to measure, monitor and evaluate implementation.
Healthy Ireland describes supportive mechanisms to ensure effective co-operation between the health sector and other areas of Government and public services concerned with social protection, children, industry, food safety, education, transport, housing, agriculture and the environment. The implementation of Healthy Ireland is now focused on the development of an outcomes framework and a physical activity plan. In this regard the Health and Well-being Programme in the Department of Health will work closely with relevant policy divisions in the Department of Health and with existing cross-government and cross-sectoral groups, such as SAGO.
