Sadiq Khan to Ban Junk Food Advertising on London Transport to Tackle Child Obesity

Independent - Junk food advertising will be banned from London’s tube and bus network, under plans put forward by the city’s mayor that steal a march on Theresa May.

Sadiq Khan said the move was necessary to curb the “ticking timebomb” of child obesity, which has left almost 40 per cent of 10 and 11-year-olds in the capital overweight or obese.

Hot food takeaways would also be barred from opening within 400 metres of schools, under a new draft London Food Strategy published today.

“If we don’t take bold steps against child obesity we are not doing right by our young people, as well as placing a huge strain on our already pressurised health service in years to come,” Mr Khan.

“It can’t be right that, in a city as prosperous as London, where you live and the income you have can have a massive impact on whether you have access to healthy, nutritious food and your exposure to junk food advertising.”

The strategy comes nearly two years after the prime minister watered down plans to tackle obesity, throwing out restrictions on junk food averts and promotions in supermarkets.

Ms May has been fiercely criticised, including by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver who said the action had been gutted after she “took over and pushed it out”.

Under Mr Khan’s plans, adverts for unhealthy food and drink would be banned from the underground network, buses and bus shelters, plus the Overground trains run by Transport for London (TfL).

Products high in fat, salt or sugar would be targeted under an established standard set by the Food Standards Agency’s nutrient profiling system.

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