Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how Government steps to tackle childhood obesity differ between areas of low obesity and more deprived areas with higher levels of obesity.

Our childhood obesity plan Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action addresses inequalities through a number of measures. The soft drinks industry levy and reformulation programme are expected to help reduce childhood obesity for those with lower incomes. Our plan also delivers school based interventions including the expansion of healthy breakfast clubs for schools in more deprived areas through £10 million per year funding from the soft drinks industry levy.

Public Health England (PHE) is also supporting actions to improve the health of the most disadvantaged groups fastest and address the social determinants of poor health. This includes influencing and supporting efforts by local government, clinical commissioning groups and other local bodies to take action to reduce inequalities through the provision of accessible data and data tools, support to a health and health equity in all policies approach in local government through training and resources, and embedding health inequalities dimensions into all PHE led major health improvement programmes.

Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action is available at:

www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/546588/Childhood_obesity_2016__2__acc.pdf