§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the changes in obesity levels in men over the last five years in(a) the UK and (b) the West Midlands. [118497]
§ Miss Melanie Johnson[holding answer 12 June 2003]: Figures on obesity levels in men for the United Kingdom are not available. However, in line with other countries, the levels of obesity in men have risen in England over the last five years, with the Health Survey for England showing that in 2001–01, 21 per cent. of men were obese, compared with 16.4 per cent. in 1996. Regional information has not been collected over the past five years, but analyses of the Health Survey for England 2003 showed that in the West Midlands, 23.1 per cent. of men were obese in 2001.