Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senators for the invitation to be here. I have had the opportunity to listen to some of their statements and points of view and in many ways, this is part of the consultation on the obesity policy and action plan announced earlier. In that regard the debate is very helpful. I agree with Senators' sentiments that the consultation should not go on forever - it will not - and it is my intention to publish the policy and, more important, the action plan before the end of the calendar year.

There are some issues that I should pick up that were mentioned by Senators. The healthy eating guidelines are being revised this year and will address some of the specifics, such as bread types, pasta and so on, as mentioned by Senator Byrne earlier. There will also be a communication strategy to support the new healthy eating guidelines. The Department of Health is currently working with the Department of Education and Skills on a whole-school approach to healthy eating, including advice and training for children on helping to cook healthy food, as well as supporting the existing "Food Dudes" programme, with which some Members would be familiar. It deals with fruit and vegetables and is working very well. The issue of bariatric surgery was raised. In 2014, there were 22 surgeries done in Galway and 20 done in Dublin. This year, in addition to those in Galway there will be 50 in Dublin and 80 next year. We are making additional provision for more bariatric surgery this year and again next year. Unfortunately, as with many issues, demand is rising. That is not necessarily because supply is not increasing, as it is, but demand is increasing also.

With the new GP contract, children will be weighed at ages two and five. This does not need to come at a dedicated visit and it is something that doctors can do opportunistically when the kid is visiting for something else anyway. Many GPs do it anyway but it is important. I have heard some people say this approach is not evidence-based but we know from evidence that just guessing somebody's weight is appallingly inaccurate. It is important, if they are not doing it already, that GPs should weigh children and see if there is an issue around obesity. This can lead to an opportunity for early, brief intervention by the doctor in giving the parent advice on what can be done to reverse a child's obesity.

I am not exactly sure how access to a dietitian would work and I imagine it would depend on the availability of dietitians in the primary care centre or the local health centre. The fees, if there are any, would not be covered by the under-six contract. Taxation is ultimately a matter for the Minister for Finance and not for me. It is also ultimately a matter for the Oireachtas but the proposal must come from the Department of Finance for any new tax or increases in taxation. Generally speaking, the Department of Finance now and historically has not been well disposed towards hypothecation of taxation; it does not like ring-fenced taxes at all. That is for the obvious reason that people are always willing to ring-fence a tax for something popular or desirable but getting people to agree to ring-fence a tax for asylum seekers or Traveller accommodation etc. would be harder. The general view is that the best principle is for tax to go to the one pot and the money is prioritised for spending thereafter. Should the Department take a different view, I would very much welcome hypothecated taxes going towards public health.

I expect to have the draft heads of the Bill dealing with calories posting on menus by November for consideration by the joint committee, with a memo for the Government by the end of the year. That would cover both calorie posting and health and well-being in the workplace. I would like the workplace to get to somewhere like the current position with health and safety. Ten years ago, health and safety in the workplace was rubbish but people were very annoyed about having to do health and safety statements etc. Now, people very rarely die in the workplace when people died or were injured all the time at work. I would like to see a similar process begin with health and well-being, encouraging and, in due course, requiring employers to make their workplace a healthy place and take well-being seriously there.

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland is currently revising its marketing code for 2016 and we are making a submission as a Department to that. In particular, we are seeking the advertisement to be extended. It is now 6 p.m. and we are asking the authority to extend it to 9 p.m., and I would welcome the support of Senators in that proposal. We want to strengthen the code of practice, particularly when it comes to marketing in the non-broadcast media, product placement and retail outlets. There is also the issue of food sponsorship.

I like and would welcome colour-coded food labelling. It is done voluntarily by some food manufacturers, and one sees it in particular in Marks & Spencer, for example, and it is being done by many food producers in the UK as part of the responsibility deal. I would like to see this happen more in Ireland, although it is not something we can impose by law as food is traded across the European Union and it would be a barrier to trade. It is something that would have to be done on a European level or we would have a difficulty with Irish-produced food not being allowed to be exported, which would be problematic.

I could be wrong but my understanding is that physical education is mandatory in schools. Students may not always get the hours they are supposed to but it is mandatory. A positive aspect of the reform of the junior certificate curriculum being implemented by the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, is that the subject of well-being will be core to the new cycle. It will include elements like sport, physical activity, nutrition and health advice. It will be a good step forward. I would like to see physical education being examined for the leaving certificate. That is done in other countries and it would be a good move here.

The Department of Education and Skills is also working on a new school food policy that is currently being prepared and it will address issues such as vending machines and tuck shops. I know the Minister, Deputy O'Sullivan, has a particular interest in that. Some schools have healthy vending machines and I know Luttrellstown Community College near me has one; I took a photograph of it the other day. I had not seen one before and I found it quite interesting. It is not necessarily a case of not having vending machines.