Former prime ministers urge government to 'be bold, act fast and have no regrets' on obesity

• Three former prime ministers, one deputy prime minister, ten former health secretaries, and six other former and current prominent politicians have conceded that governments have not gone far enough on obesity
• Politicians including Sir Tony Blair, Boris Johnson and Lord David Cameron have all made clear that successive UK governments have not taken a sufficiently strong approach to the issue - as they joined in calling for further action on obesity and prevention 
• New government urged by former office holders to be bold, act fast and have no regrets about doing more to tackle obesity and prevention

The 20 politicians interviewed served in relevant government roles over a period spanning more than three decades, between 1990 and 2024, yet there is broad agreement that the combined efforts of successive governments up to the present day have not been enough.

All three former prime ministers interviewed for the report called for the current Government to go further on obesity:

• Tony Blair calls for “bold, innovative steps, including shifting the focus of the NHS from cure to prevention, and stay committed to building a healthier, more resilient Britain.”
• David Cameron says “If you had to rank issues Britain faces, chronic disease is right up there – and obesity is a significant driver of so many of our biggest killers… There is a lot more that government can and should do.”
• Boris Johnson said “the government has to do something to try and deal with it. We can’t be indifferent to these levels of suffering.”

The report, entitled Nourishing Britain: A Political Manual for Improving the Nation’s Health, references Recipe for Change polling demonstrating public support for Government intervention, and it includes practical advice for politicians and those campaigning to make change, based on the advice and insights of former prime ministers, health secretaries and senior ministers. Over the last three decades, obesity levels have doubled. Politicians on all sides have made efforts to avert it, but the report says “attempts to tackle obesity have mostly been abandoned, derailed, watered down, delayed into extinction, lost in the system or forgotten altogether”.

The report authors summarised their top recommendations for progressing this work:

1. Create a compelling argument
2. Build a movement
3. Enlist the Prime Minister
4. Be bold, act fast, no regrets

The authors reflected on the report findings:

Henry Dimbleby said:

“Finally politicians of all colours agree we haven’t done enough to tackle obesity. It is fascinating to get a rare glimpse from the inside of the forces stacked against change. We now need their successors to learn from their experiences so they can avoid their mistakes and build on what works.”

Dr Dolly van Tulleken said:

“I’m regularly asked why politicians can’t just fix the food system and reduce obesity rates. We spoke to many who tried. What is striking is that none of them, left or right, regret their efforts, but some wish they had done much more. Many faced fierce lobbying, or lost fights, or had to spend their political capital on other things. All of them think it’s a major policy challenge and urge the new government to act early and be bold.”

Responding to the report, Kate Howard, Recipe for Change campaign coordinator at Sustain says:

"We welcome this insightful report which highlights the ‘slow-motion disaster’ of waves of politicians not doing enough to address food-related ill health when they all know how urgently we need to act. The report shows - just as we demonstrated in our recent open letter to the Health Secretary and Chancellor, signed by 35 leading organisations – there are plenty of well-evidenced policies ready to be picked up. It’s time for the Government to get on with it."