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Thank you.  It is a pleasure to be here for this extremely important and well-timed conference.

 

It must be every conference's dream to take place on the same day as a major report is published.

 

As Margaret quite rightly said, John Reid and I are working closely together, and seeking to bind our Departments together to deploy all the resources we have available to tackle the problem of obesity.

 

It is a problem of the modern world.

 

It's about the calories you eat and the calories that you burn.

 

Rising prosperity means that many of us eat what we like, whenever we like.

 

It means that we can travel in comfort in our cars.

 

It means that jobs are sedentary and our homes are filled with labour-saving devices.

 

It means that we can entertain ourselves in front of TV screens, computer screens and game consoles.

 

 

Yet what we eat is often determined by tradition and habit.  Our predecessors needed sweet, fat foods because of the hard physical work so many had to do, and so that's what we continue to eat today although for the majority of us our lifestyles are dramatically different.

 

We agree – I think – on why we are facing rising levels of obesity. But what I'd like to do today is set out what I see as the balance between the role of Government and individuals' personal responsibility.  Not forgetting industry also has a role to play.

 

We do however live in a time where there is an almost allergic reaction to any suggestion that Government can or should influence private behaviour (and obesity is a function of private behaviour) This is an obsession particularly of more right wing commentators.

 

Certainly in my 12 years as an MP, no one has ever complained to me during my constituency surgeries about the interference of the nanny state.

 

Providing people with the means to understand and take informed decisions; removing some of the obstacles to changing behaviour that may be beyond the means of individuals; getting out the wider considerations and context – that is not being a nanny state, but the enabling role of good Government.

 

But Government must tread carefully – it must not usurp individual responsibility but provide a context in which people have the means to exercise their own individual responsibility.

 

The role for Government is to create the opportunities for individuals to make choices about the way their live.  For example, to provide the Healthy Living Centres, the sports facilities, the access to good advice about getting fit and eating well, particularly for people who live in areas like the one I represent which is not populated with high-tech gyms, where people don't have the disposal income to always be able to make choices.

 

 

But it is also to protect the vulnerable. We already regulate food advertising to children, but as most of you will know, I have asked Ofcom to look at the existing code on to see whether it is tough enough.

 

And I am looking to the advertising and the food industries to work with us on making sure we get the right messages about healthy eating and about exercise across to children and young people.

 

And it is this position, that divides us from those who take the view that obesity is purely an individual's own responsibility. 

 

An active Government is one that intervenes to benefit of its citizens.  Not obtrusively or clumsily, but in a way that helps people to get the most out of their lives.

 

And Government cannot ignore the wider social and economic costs that increases in obesity inevitably create.

 

And we will not ignore the fact that it is often people on low incomes, with the least education qualifications who are the most affected.

 

The health, social and economic costs of obesity and physical inactivity are obvious.

 

 

And the report by Derek Wanless published today makes it clear that obesity is one of the conditions where preventative action needs to be pursued vigorously if we are to have a chance at all at keeping those costs under control.

 

One estimate is that obesity costs the economy at least £2.5 billion a year.

 

· Obesity levels in England have tripled in the past two decades;

 

· 21% of men and 24% of women are now obese, that's over 13 million adults now overweight or obese;

 

· A study by the HSE in 2002 found that 16.6% males and 16.7% females aged 2-15  were obese;

 

· The DoH report that one in seven 15 year olds and one in twelve six year olds are obese.

 

Recognising the problem is easy, but we also recognise that the causes of obesity are complex and difficult to treat and we will need to call on the resources of a multiplicity of agents to achieve change.

 

My Department does hold one of the solutions in tackling physical activity and low participation in sport of children and young people.

 

 

Tackling the "couch potato" culture amongst children and young people is a priority for us.

 

Good habits learnt young are important for the rest of those children's lives.

 

Young people need to know that they are not passive victims of an irresistible epidemic but that they can be instrumental in taking control of their lives.

 

It is our job to help them achieve that control.

 

Exercise plays an important role in solving obesity, not only in weight loss but also:

 

· It brings psychological benefits and consistently shows that it helps relieve depression and anxiety

· It improves concentration levels

· It lowers the risk of heart disease and also helps to lower cholesterol

 

 

We know that physical activity can be an important way of getting young people more engaged.

 

We know that it can help achieve this Government's objectives in health, education, and law and order.

 

The case and scope for Government intervention is clear.  Because it so clearly cuts across Departments we have established the Activity Co-ordination Team (ACT) to take the Game Plan recommendation to produce a national physical activity strategy for England. Game Plan recommends a very ambitious programme for improving the health of the nation by increasing physical activity.

 

ACT will recommend measures to raise mass participation, particularly among people who are economically disadvantaged, school leavers, women and older people.
 
As part of this we need consistent, clear and robust standards of evidence and ACT has already commissioned some new research.  

 

 

So what are the areas we are looking at?

 

· Why participation falls so dramatically in people's teens - we have a 70% drop out rate in participation in sport amongst our 16 and 17 year olds

 

· Why so many people feel that there are barriers to getting active, while others have no difficulty at all

 

· We're also seeking to answer the issues of access, location and price

 

· How we achieve wider use of community school facilities

 

· And while we try to make sport as attractive an activity as possible, we need to work out how we persuade those who don't like sport that physical activity is also still valuable for them

 

But we live in modern times and therefore that the policies we adopt must reflect how people's lives are changing rapidly.

 

They are busy, time-pressed.

 

They have to be offered solutions which suit their individual tastes and preferences.

 

 

People are not going to give up their cars, TVs, computer games, lifts, central heating, or washing machines.

 

So we have to look at wider issues such as

 

· Travel – the need to encourage walking/cycling

 

· Time – the need for people to be able to combine all the demands on their time and still include exercise.  There is a message for employers here.

 

The first three-year phase of ACT's national strategy will be published in Spring this year.  And of course John Reid will publish the White Paper on Public Health in July.
 
This brings us to where the Government is at now.
 
Starting from our responsibility.

 

Getting schoolchildren into sport and keeping them involved is vital.

 

Regular participation in sport in PE and school sport can reduce obesity and improve fitness levels.

 

 

Children that participate have been displayed improved levels of concentration, higher levels of self-esteem and there is a marked improvement in attendance and behaviour.

 

In October 2002, the Prime Minister launched our National strategy for PE, school sport and club links.

 

This project is designed to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to participate in high quality PE and sport both inside and outside of school.

 

The Government is investing more than £450 million over 2003 to 2006 to transform PE and school sport across England.

 

We want all children to develop the habit of exercise.

 

Our aim is to treble the percentage of school children who spend a minimum of two hours each week on high-quality PE and school sport within and beyond the curriculum to 75% by 2006.

 

 

The Programme is already delivering results:

· 222 School sport partnerships out of a target of 400 by 2006

 

· 231 Specialist sports colleges out of 400 by 2006

 

· 1280 School sports co-ordinators out of a target of 3200 by 2006

 

· Nearly 7,000 Primary Link teachers out of 18,000

 

And a national coverage so far of 38% with a target of 100%

 

And I believe there will come a point later this year when we will clearly see the impact of this investment, when it is clear to parents that their children are playing sport after school or at the weekend. And we will have reached a critical mass where we achieve resonance.

 

We are serious about investment in the grassroots of sport.  Few can be champions, but everyone can be healthier and happier through exercise.

 

So for all these reasons, the Government is making a serious financial commitment to the development of sport at a local level.

 

Quite apart from the increased funding of local authorities through general grants, councils have also benefited from nearly £700 million in National Lottery grants over nearly 10 years since the Lottery began.

 

We are serious about sport as a good in itself, and as an instrument for tackling obesity.

 

 

 

A contract of partnership across Government, with the corporate and voluntary sectors and crucially partnership with individuals, helping them take responsibility for the quality of their diets and for their levels of exercise they take.

 

It's a hard slog embarking on a programme like this.  It isn't glamorous.  And I know it frustrates people who want us to wave a magic wand and solve the problem at a stroke.  But it simply isn't like that. Our naivety will defeat us if we think there are quick fixes when we are trying to achieve cultural change.

 

 

 

Would like to say a few words about employers.

 

All employers have a role in tackling obesity.

 

I was delighted to read a report recently showing that offering staff the opportunity to exercise was good for productivity.

 

In my own Department we are investing in facilities to support the health and fitness of our 400 centrally-based staff:

 

· investing in an improved gym and fitness centre to promote physical exercise during and around the working day;

· improving bike storage and shower facilities to encourage cycling to work;

· and providing facilities for staff to take part in low-impact aerobics, yoga and relaxation classes to promote health and well-being and to tackle stress. 

 

 

We'll also be consulting staff on what more can be done both individually and collectively in the Department as a whole.
 
I urge all employers to do what they can – because it's good for their bottom line as well as being good for your staff.

 

 

But obesity is not just about calorie burn, it's about calorie intake too.

 

That's why we want to work with the food and advertising industries to solve what is a complex issue.

 

People need good advice, clear information and the opportunity to get the types of food they and their families would most benefit from.

 

And I would like to pay warm tribute to the work that Sir John Krebbs and the FSA are doing on this. The FSA are publishing their findings on food promotion and children on March 11th which they will then consult on before presenting final recommendations to Ministers in July.

 

Sir John and I have met to discuss these complex issues and I am grateful for their willingness to engage.

 

Next week I will be speaking to advertisers at their conference.

 

It will be an opportunity to highlight the work already under way in the advertising industry to create a more media literate generation that can decode and understand the implications of the messages that bombard them daily.

 

 

But there is still more to be done.  Advertisers must fully grasp the role they are uniquely placed to ensure they deliver their part in the war on obesity.

 

I am confident it is a challenge they will meet.

 

I have already had constructive discussions with major companies in food and advertising and I believe that the industry is listening and want to work with us to find some solutions.

 

Again, partnership is the way forward if we are to make the progress of the kind highlighted by Derek Wanless in his report today.

 

 

From me you get part of the story – the role that sport can play. This Government is making unprecedented investment in sport:

 

· Over £3 billion of Lottery and Exchequer money since 1997.

 

· Increased national spending per head from nearly £6 per head in 1997 to over £9 last year. We can be very proud of this tangiable evidence of the scale of our commitment to sport.

 

· Committed to an Olympic bid which if successful will transform how we see sport in this country.  A bid which links our passion for elite sport to our commitment to promoting participation.  We didn't decide to bid for the Olympics because it's the greatest sporting festival in the world – although that was part of it. We also decided to bid because the Olympics are an inspiration that can help us to change the culture of this country so that sport and physical activity is part of people's daily routine.

 

Partnership, a passion for sport, and a serious commitment to find the policies that work.  That's how we intend to fight obesity, and I know that you are all ready, willing and able to join us.