Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that children between the age of 10 and 19 require hip replacements due to obesity; and what steps they will take to support local government bodies to improve public health in this regard.

No assessment has been made centrally. Local authorities are being given over £16 billion to spend on public health over the five years of the 2015 Spending Review. We know that many are prioritising action to tackle obesity and increase physical activity according to their local need.

Alongside this, our world-leading childhood obesity plan, launched in August 2016, aims to significantly reduce England’s rate of childhood obesity within ten years by helping children and families to recognise and make healthier choices and be more active.

A copy of Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action is attached.