Catherine Noone (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Statistics show, especially in America, that if a child's school is near a big outlet or a big chipper it has an impact in terms of this issue. Small chippers in Ireland target children with deals to get them to go to them with the small amount of money they have and spend it. Be it said that this is a nanny state approach or otherwise, a policy where, ideally, chippers are not located near schools is a good one and we are reasonable in our approach in that respect.

In terms of changing the narrative around childhood obesity, the committee was directed towards an academic study which suggested that parents are not very good at identifying when their own children are overweight. Our medics need to be a bit more mature in saying that one's child might have a problem and parents should not take that personally as some reflection on them; they should just try to deal with the issue.

The United Kingdom and Ireland ranked ninth and 12th on the OECD index with respect to obesity while the Netherlands ranks 31st, just behind Japan, Slovakia and South Korea. Those in the Netherlands know what they are talking about and we learned a good deal in this report about what they are doing. They take an integrated and localised approach to this issue, therefore, they deal with it at council and departmental level. They find ways to make water cool for children and they are engraving bottles. Their thinking is very innovative. I do not have enough time to go into all they are doing.

I began by talking about preventive health. The key point we learned, and I believe Senator Wilson will agree with me on this, is that early intervention is key and also the value of prevention. The sooner we educate people - "educate people" sounds like such a patronising phrase - and ensure there is an awareness in the psyche of our population that health is wealth, that it brings vitality and that what one eats will make one more productive, physically mentally and in school, the better. It is very important.

We need strong political leadership and commitment at both national and local level, a co-ordinated whole-of-government approach covering health care, education, local government, transport, finance, the environment, sports provision, advertising and scientific research, and a national strategic strategy, which combines with a localised approach, a co-ordinated approach at local level in order to provide joined-up services and support for children and parents, with a particular focus on deprived communities. The Minister of State touched on that point, that DEIS schools are struggling more than others on this issue, and that is a major issue. People in more deprived areas - I do not like using that type of language - or less well-off people tend to eat less well and have higher levels of obesity. It is not that they can afford to be eating loads and they are fat, it is nothing of the sort.

There are many points that I could talk about and it is disappointing to have only a measly eight minutes to talk on this issue. I thank the Minister of State for her contribution. The very fact that she is here to replace the Minister, Deputy Katherine Zappone, shows how much of a cross-departmental issue this is. It is a priority issue. It needs to be at the forefront of the Government's policy making into the future.