§ 29. Mr. Woodasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will make a statement about the progress of the look after your heart campaign.
§ Mrs. CurrieThe Look After Your Heart campaign, launched on 22 April, has generated considerable interest and continues to gather momentum. Because the main aim of this phase of the campaign is to raise public awareness 71W about the dangers of heart disease and what can be done to reduce or avoid the risk, further use of the mass media is planned, in particular a television advertising campaign starting in the late summer.
An important part of the campaign strategy is to involve industry, commerce and the workplace directly. One way this is being done is through a scheme of healthy living contracts in which employers and organisations undertake to support the principles underlying the campaign by a series of practical innovations which can include providing no-smoking areas and healthy menus in public restaurants and works canteens, displaying and disseminating campaign material to staff and the public, and introducing "Look After Yourself" courses in exercise, nutrition and stress management. A contract signing ceremony with a number of company chairmen was a feature of the campaign launch, and there will be a further signing by some leading British industrial and commercial organisations on 14 July. An industry pack which includes suggested action plans on smoking, alcohol, stress, nutrition and exercise, has been produced for use in industry and has been endorsed by both the CBI and the TUC.
Major food retailers are being encouraged to mount special promotions for healthier eating and negotiations are proceeding with various sectors of the food industry to encourage the wider availability of appropriate products.
A further major strand is the healthy cities programme. A growing number of cities and towns are forming joint action teams, involving health and local authorities, local business, voluntary organisations and other local interests, to mount health promotion programmes for this purpose.
Publications on various aspects of coronary heart disease have been produced to support the campaign. These include a leaflet about healthy living designed with the main target audience in mind, of which some 4 million will be distributed during 1987. Some four million copies of other leaflets on particular aspects of coronary heart disease are also being produced. A total of £2.5 million, an increase of £ 1 million on the original budget, will be devoted to the campaign in 1987–88.