Why have obesity rates doubled since 1993?

Obesity can be a risk factor for several chronic conditions including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, osteoarthritis and some cancers.

Reports estimate, external obesity and being overweight costs the UK economy approximately £126bn per year, including £12bn to the NHS – roughly 7% of its annual budget.

Since 1992 – the year before data on obesity in England was first collected – 14 national obesity strategies have been published.

Campaigners argue progress has been too slow and calls for further intervention have increased in recent years.

Tony Blair’s government introduced a ban on junk food advertising during children’s TV programmes – although some campaigners were calling for a wider ban – while Gordon Brown launched a strategy aiming to reverse the “rising tide of obesity” after becoming prime minister in 2007.

The Conservative government introduced a UK-wide levy on high-sugar soft drinks in 2018, causing several manufacturers to cut sugar levels in their products so that they fell below the levy threshold.

During his final weeks in office in 2016, then-Prime Minister David Cameron considered banning “buy one get one free” deals for unhealthy products in supermarkets and restricting TV ads for junk food and other high sugar products.

Although both Theresa May and Boris Johnson argued at times for further action, Cameron’s ideas were not followed up, partly due to the pandemic which delayed plans further, and afterwards when ministers argued restrictions on such deals would be unfair on shoppers due to surging inflation.

In January this year, the Labour government introduced a ban on junk food advertising before 21:00 on television and at any time online after almost a decade of consideration.

Further plans to crack down on the sale of unhealthy food items are still yet to come into effect despite being first pledged by Labour in 2024, while a recent select committee report urged ministers to do more like stopping fast food outlets opening close to schools.