Bill to protect children from junk food advertising clears first hurdle

Children's and health campaigners have welcomed the news that Baroness Thornton's Bill to introduce a 9pm watershed for junk food TV adverts has cleared its first major hurdle in the House of Lords.

Some young supporters of the Children's Food Campaign line up with Baroness Thornton and Sophie Grigson to say "Protect children form junk food adverts".

Peers today passed the Television Advertising (Food) Bill through to the next stage in the process of becoming law.

The peers who spoke in favour of the Bill included, writer Baroness Ruth Rendell; Lord Krebs, the former head of the Food Standards Agency; and the Bishop of St Albans.

Baroness Thornton said in her speech: “The current rules to protect children from junk food adverts are ineffective.  Given that one in three children is now obese or overweight it is vital that we adequately protect children from junk food adverts before 9pm.”

Richard Watts, Campaign Coordinator of the Children's Food Campaign, said:  “The momentum behind a 9pm watershed for junk food adverts is growing all the time.  Today, the House of Lords has passed this Bill; earlier in the week we won the support of Harriet Harman; in the last few months over 230 MPs have signed up to support the 9pm watershed.” 

He continued:  “Today's vote means this Bill will still be before Parliament when Gordon Brown become Prime Minister.  Given he has already signalled his support for controls on junk food advertising before the watershed we're very confident indeed that this vital public health measure will become law.”

Earlier in the week over 50 health, consumer and children's organisations, and celebrities such as Raymond Blanc, Antony Worrall Thomson and Prue Leith, wrote to senior politicians urging them to protect children from junk food TV advertising before 9pm.  In response Harriet Harman, a candidate for the Deputy Leadership of the Labour Party, endorsed the campaign. 

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For further information please contact Richard Watts on 07710 782719 or 0203 5596 777.

Notes to editors

1. A photo of Baroness Thornton, celebrity chef Sophie Grigson and some young supporters of the campaign is available from Richard Watts.
2. The Children's Food Campaign wants to improve children's health and well-being through better food - and food teaching - in schools, and protecting children from junk food marketing.  We are supported by over 300 organisations and 12,000 members of the public.  We were behind the ground-breaking Children's Food Bill introduced into Parliament last year.  The Children's Food Campaign is coordinated by Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming.
3. A 9pm watershed restriction on high fat, sugar and salt foods would reduce children's exposure to this type of advertising by 82%. Such a measure is supported by a broad coalition of health, children's and consumer groups as well as by Ofcom's own advisory committee for England, the Office of the Children's Commissioner, and the Food Standards Agency.  A British Heart Foundation / TNS poll last year found that 69% of parents supported a 9pm watershed.
4. Research by Which? has shown just how ineffective the new rules on TV junk food advertising are.  The new rules will not affect advertising during the 26 commercial TV programmes most watched by children or in any of the time periods when most children are watching.
5. Over 230 MPs have signed a motion in support of the Bill.  The full list of signatories for EDM 404 is here: http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=32033&SESSION=885 
6. Rt Hon Gordon Brown MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer, said on 25 October 2006 on GMTV, when talking about the childhood obesity crisis: “we have got to do something about television advertising before the watershed hour”.