Firms to be hit by junk food levy for sports
centres
Britain's
biggest food companies are to be told by the government to pay an “anti-obesity”
levy to fund new sports centres or face punitive laws restricting advertising,
marketing and labelling.
Firms
such as McDonald's, Walkers and Cadbury Schweppes are to be asked to contribute
tens of millions of pounds towards the sports facilities. The government
is set to provide £1m for the scheme for every £3m pledged
by the food industry. It will be used to build sports centres, gyms, football
pitches and tennis courts. The food industry confirmed this weekend that
it was preparing to co-operate with ministers and could provide hundreds
of millions of pounds to fend off regulation. Last week the government
suggested it was considering banning junk food adverts during children's
television programmes, although this is now unlikely.
The
latest proposal, to establish a National Foundation for Sport funded primarily
by private firms, is revealed in leaked cabinet documents passed to The
Sunday Times. The main food industry groups, including the Food and Drink
Federation and British Retail Consortium, are due to meet ministers this
week to discuss the plans. Minutes of a ministerial meeting between the
Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Treasury detail
the government's determination to extract financial backing from the junk-food
firms.
"The
National Foundation for Sport was a proposed initiative... to raise money
for sport through sponsorship and donations from business,” said the minutes.
"DCMS
would produce a more worked-up proposal for investment in sports facilities.
This could include a proposal for business to contribute to the investment,
with the Exchequer matching private funding. For example, for every £3
of private investment, government could contribute a further £1."
The
meeting was told by Tessa Jowell, the culture minister, that the food
industry had already been asked to come forward with ideas for promoting
a healthy lifestyle if they want to avoid stricter regulation”.
Paul
Boateng, a Treasury minister, said securing a "significant contribution"
from the private sector for the sports centre scheme was "attractive".
Yesterday Martin Paterson, deputy director-general of the Food and Drink
Federation, said his members were likely to participate in the scheme.
"As an industry we are already encouraging people to take more exercise
by supporting community initiatives," he said. "We would certainly
be willing to discuss this idea. Manufacturers have hundreds of millions
to spend on this sort of project."
The
move comes after the Commons health select committee criticised food manufacturers
for "cynical" promotions using text messages to target children's
mobile phones with advertisements for sweets and snacks. Children were
being encouraged to text a number or a word to see if they have won a
prize under campaigns that have been run by companies such as Masterfoods,
the maker of Mars bars, Walkers Snacks, Coca-Cola and McDonald's. The
companies could then send back promotional information and retain the
sender's number.
Last
month a parliamentary select committee condemned the government's failure
to tackle Britain's soaring levels of obesity caused by bad diets and
"couch-potato" lifestyles. Britain has the fastest-growing obesity
rate in Europe, with three-quarters of adults overweight or obese and
about 10% of children "clinically obese". Next month the government
will announce a new target to halt the rise in child obesity. The health
and education departments will pledge to stop any further increases in
levels of obesity for 11-year-olds.
Ministers
hope the new privately sponsored sports facilities will form a key plank
in this autumn's public health white paper. It will also encourage donations
from firms not involved in the food or drink industry. The documents reveal
that the DCMS is close to securing £40m from Barclays to finance
grassroots football. The government has been criticised for failing to
encourage children to do more exercise and for sanctioning the sale of
school playing fields. The documents reveal it is missing its “school
sport target” of ensuring 75% of children participate in two hours a week
of sport or physical education. Currently just 38% of children meet the
target.
The
DCMS confirmed last night that the scheme was being considered.
Source:
The Sunday Times, 6 June 2004
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