News

The paper comes in response to alarming figures, which reveal that six in ten adults, and one in four reception-aged children are overweight or obese in Wales.

Minister for health and social services, Vaughan Gething, said: “This government is not prepared to let a poor diet or physical inactivity be defining features in the lives of (Wales’) children and young people.

“We should not tolerate that our next generation will grow up with the normality of regularly eating highly processed foods, having no concept about where their food comes from, or not having enough movement in their daily lives.

“We must not be fazed by this challenge - obesity is preventable and not inevitable. We can enable change.”

As such, ‘Healthy weight: healthy Wales’ is divided into four main themes to help citizens lead a more balanced lifestyle: leadership and enabling change; healthy environments; healthy settings; and healthy people.

• Leadership and enabling change: drive improved leadership and accountability to deliver ‘Healthy weight: healthy Wales’ across all sectors
• Healthy environments: create an environment that supports everyone to make healthier food and activity choices
• Healthy settings: create healthy settings so people can access healthy meals, snacks and drinks and be physically active
• Healthy people: provide opportunities for people and communities to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight

Promising the Welsh Government is “committed” to get people healthy, it wants citizens to get involved and contribute to its obesity-fighting initiative.

‘What matters?’ statements designed to drive response are littered throughout the paper, to help government prioritise “the actions (it) needs to take.”

A series of regional events, focus groups and engagements will also be running across the country, to ensure as many voices get heard as possible.

With Minister Gething insisting “(he) wants to hear views from across Wales,” people can have their say online until 12 April: https://beta.gov.wales/node/11561/respond-online.

Although there is clearly work to be done, UKHospitality praised the “positive work” already undertaken by Welsh hospitality businesses, as executive director for Wales, David Chapman, explains: “As with the rest of the UK, hospitality businesses in Wales are working hard to promote and deliver healthier attitudes to food and drink.

“Venues have taken steps over recent years to provide customers with more choice, a broader product range and a greater level of transparency and information.

“It is vital that any measures eventually introduced by the Welsh Government are proportionate and do not hamper efforts already ongoing by hospitality businesses.

“It is greatly encouraging that this consultation document shares UKHospitality’s commitment to cooperation and partnership working between Government and industry on this matter, and we look forward to continuing to work closely with the Welsh Government to help achieve its aims.

“But it must be in a way that doesn’t disadvantage the hospitality sector in Wales.”