§ Mr. ReedTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many staff are employed in his Department to promote sports participation, as part of his public health role; [123909]
(2) how much is spent by his Department to promote the public health benefits of participation in sport and physical exercise. [123910]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe Department of Health is committed to developing policies that provide people with the skills, information and support to make and sustain healthy lifestyle choices.
The Department of Health funds a physical activity programme to:
support the delivery of Planning and Priorities Framework targets and national service framework milestones;work with other government departments and stakeholders to enhance opportunities for physical activity; anddevelop and communicate the evidence base for physical activity.It is not possible to provide an overall figure for Department of Health spending to promote the public health benefits of physical activity and exercise, since the 236W amount spent by primary care trusts (PCTs) on the promotion of physical activity from the devolved Department of Health budgets varies in each PCT.
Department of Health staff work across topic areas within the whole range of work covering cardiovascular disease and cancer prevention (which includes promotion of physical activity) according to needs and we do not enumerate specific people on the topic of sports participation. The Department of Health employs a number of organisations and individuals on an ad hoc contractual basis to assist the department in the delivery of specific work items, and also receives support and advice on the evidence base for successful interventions from the Health Development Agency.
§ Mr. ReedTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to tackle obesity levels through increasing participation in sport and physical activity; and if he will make a statement. [123911]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonConsiderable action is being taken across Government to tackle obesity levels, especially through increasing physical activity and improving diet.
The Government have recently set a challenging target for 70 per cent. of the population to be active by 2020. To ensure that there is a co-ordinated and strategic approach to the planning and delivery of sport and physical activity across a diverse range of sectors—such as transport, countryside management and town planning—and in response to this target, a Sport and Physical Activity Board (SPAB) has been established. The SPAB, jointly led by the Department of Health and Department of Culture, Media and Sport and supported by a dedicated delivery team, met for the first time on 8 July 2003.
Another key project in our programme of work are the local exercise action pilots (LEAPs), which we jointly fund with Sport England and the Countryside Agency. LEAPs will test the effectiveness of primary care trust-led interventions to increase access and levels of physical activity in communities based in neighbourhood renewal areas. Involving a range of partners, the activities range from walking, cycling and swimming, to clinical-based programmes that are focusing on diabetes and weight management.