Dr. John Devlin:

I thank the committee for their helpful comments. A comment was made about the cosy relationship. It is fair to say we have our differences with the industry with regard to advertising and how it should be marketed and we make our own submissions in that respect. That process is still under way so we cannot determine what the outcome will be. That is being done through the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. We are holding strong on the watershed and especially with regard to those foods high or on the top shelf of the food pyramid. We believe there should be restrictions for these. The booklet outlines that certain foods, especially those on the top shelf, have no nutritional value. Unfortunately, this is where most of the advertising takes place. We would prefer to see more advertising in respect of fruit and vegetables and so on. Many of the products advertised are not consistent with our healthy eating policy. We work closely with the industry with regard to potential solutions in this area. We have differences with regard to the desirability or otherwise of a sugar and sweetened drinks levy. It is fair to say there are different perspectives on that. This is why we have conducted a thorough health impact assessment and we will be reporting soon to the Minister with all the impacts relating to health and the burden of disease and obesity as well as the other potential impacts relating to trade and employment and so on. At the end of the process, we will have a good indication of the options and information to be provided to the Government relating to decisions which we believe will ensure better public policy.

A comment was made about disseminating booklets leaflets and information. I will hand over to my colleagues because, as part of our communications strategy, these booklets have been disseminated widely. We can provide a flavour of the numbers and the outlets where they have been distributed. I call on my colleague, Dr. Mary Flynn, to comment on calorie posting. As suggested, it is an important initiative but there are technical and practical considerations. We are working on an implementation plan. I will pass to my to colleagues in the front row.