Speaking in the SNP Scottish Government Debate – Meeting the Challenge, Physical Activity and its Contribution to Tackling Obesity (17/05/12), Nanette Milne, Scottish Conservative MSP for the North East said:
“No-one can doubt the need for action to address the increasing problem of obesity in this country, the health consequences of which are well known and cannot be understated.
“Only last week figures on childhood obesity published by ISD Scotland revealed that 21.4% of primary 1 children in the 2010/11 academic year had a body mass index which put them in the overweight bracket. The proportion of obese pupils was up from 9.5% to 9.6%, and particularly worrying, those with severe obesity had risen from 5.4% to 5.5%. What a shocking indictment – that over 5% of Scotland’s young people are now severely obese.
“And with almost a quarter of women and just over a fifth of men in the UK already classed as obese (the highest in Europe), experts predict that by 2030 these figures on current trends will have risen to 48% of men and 43% of women in the obese bracket, with many more classed as overweight. Surely we must prevent this prediction from becoming a reality!
“The Scottish Government’s election pledge 5 years ago to provide 2 hours per week of physical education for Scottish pupils was very welcome, and we are all extremely disappointed that this has not yet been achieved. So whilst it may be the case, as the motion states, that levels of physical activity in Scotland are increasing, defying an international trend, the Government needs to be reminded that there is no room for complacency, and that it should be looking to implement its manifesto commitment.
“A focus at national and local level on the four principles being promoted by the Scottish Sports Council, namely PE, People, Places and Performance would undoubtedly underpin a change in the culture of sport and physical activity in Scotland, which could, as they say, “revolutionise both sport and health in Scotland”.