Dara Calleary
Ceist:78. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Health the measures he is putting in place to tackle obesity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30421/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 25 June 2013
Ceisteanna (78)
Freagraí ó Béal (15 píosaí cainte)
The House will forgive me for a degree of repetition, as we have dealt with this already to some extent. As Members know, as Minister for Health, I have made excess weight and obesity a public health priority and have established a special action group on obesity, SAGO, with which I meet regularly to make further progress on the obesity agenda. SAGO comprises key stakeholders and is chaired by my Department. The range of measures being implemented by my Department seeks to promote a healthy lifestyle, to encourage people to make healthier food choices, to become more active and to take the first steps towards reducing obesity. SAGO is working on a combination of priority actions which, taken together, should make a difference in the long term. These measures include the following: calorie posting in restaurants; healthy eating guidelines; addressing the marketing of food and drink to children; treatment algorithms; opportunistic screening and monitoring for excess weight and obesity; addressing the issue of vending machines in schools; and a physical action plan. SAGO is also currently examining ways to promote healthy eating in accordance with this Department's healthy eating guidelines.
As I said earlier, during our Presidency we had an informal meeting at which childhood excess weight and obesity was a key element.
The European Union is drafting an action plan for member states to take this work forward.
Healthy Ireland, a framework for improved health and well-being, forms the basis of how a whole-Government and whole-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 the strategic action group on obesity, SAGO. We have, for the first time, a director of health and well-being, Dr. Stephanie O'Keeffe.
Just to show the Punch and Judy politics is gone from this House, I congratulate the Minister on his proposal to ban menthol cigarettes throughout Europe. It is a very positive proposal.
Hear, hear.
The Minister has put obesity to the fore, but while we are talking about policies in this House, it is not happening in any real terms on the streets of this country. The statistics are alarming. Against any benchmark, country or statistics from the World Health Organisation, WHO, or the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, OECD, it is clear we have an obesity epidemic in this country. We have had an alarming doubling of the number of people who are overweight or obese over the past ten years. As a practising GP the Minister knows the difficulties that will cause regarding cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and musculoskeletal difficulties. While we talk about it, families are not aware of the problems obesity will cause in the years ahead. There must be a very concerted effort targeted particularly in the schools. We hate always burdening schools with further obligations but there must be a healthy lifestyle commitment in education that encourages people and makes them aware of what they are doing and eating, and the outcomes of what they put into their bodies.
I thank the Deputy for his support for the tobacco directive in Europe. It was very important from the Irish Presidency point of view in health, along with the cross-border health threats initiative which will allow us to procure vaccines with other countries rather than being a small nation faced with multinationals. We could not get quite the same deal as bigger countries. That is resolved. The fact of 700,000 Europeans dying every year from tobacco is a major issue and I look forward, I hope, to the Deputy's support when we bring in the plain packaging Bill later this year.
I share the Deputy's concerns about obesity. We are working on this across Government for the first time. We have agreement across Government that we must tackle this issue. There is a need to stop paying lip-service to public health and pay for it. As politicians we must all take responsibility for this. It is much sexier to open a new MRI scanner or hospital wing than it is to promote a public health initiative which can save many more lives and much more money in the future.
Hear, hear.
The problem is that the result and payback happens not in the short term but in the long term when, perhaps, we will all have long left these Chambers for good.
The Minister is beating up smokers again.
We do not want to be repetitive. This was raised in a priority question also. We need serious action very quickly. Dr. Donal O'Shea has been clear about this for some time and has pointed out that we are in the middle of the epidemic. We already have it. We can examine the statistics of any other country; where it continually develops it creates huge societal and health problems and pressures on the health services in the years ahead. Any efforts to act now will save a lot in the medium to long term.
I join Deputy Kelleher in welcoming the progress on the issue of menthol cigarettes.
Will the Deputies give us a break?
I am sorry for the Deputy. It is tough luck.
Smokers are blamed for everything.
We are not anti-smoker or anti-Deputy Finian McGrath. We want to support smokers to become ex-smokers. We are anti-smoking and anti-tobacco industry, which is targeting our children and robbing them of the opportunity to make a full decision later in life. What choice does one have once one is addicted? None.
The Minister would blame us for the banking crisis.