JUNK ADS JUNKED
Adverts for junk food will be banned from tube trains and buses in bid to stop ‘ticking timebomb’ of obese kids
Jamie Oliver is backing the anti-obesity plan from London Mayor Sadiq Khan
JUNK food ads are set to be BANNED from the tube and London buses under a new crackdown on the obesity epidemic.
Sadiq Khan today announced plans to stop the "ticking timebomb" of childhood obesity by restricting which firms can buy ads.
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The London Mayor's draconian ban is backed by Jamie Oliver - who blasted the "relentless junk food advertising" which kids are exposed to.
But critics claimed he was just trying to grab "cheap headlines" and insisted the plan would flop.
Mr Khan is launching a consultation on the proposal, which would see a ban on ads for "unhealthy food and drink that are high in fat, salt or sugar".
Junk food advertising would no longer be able to appear on tube trains, buses or bus stops.
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The Mayor said he was driven to act after stats showed 40 per cent of 11-year-olds in London are overweight or obese.
He said: "Child obesity in London is a ticking timebomb and I am determined to act.
“I’m determined to do all I can to tackle this issue with the powers I have and help Londoners make healthy food choices for themselves and their families.
"That is why I’m proposing to ban adverts for harmful junk food from our entire Tube and bus network. I want to reduce the influence and pressure that can be put on children and families to make unhealthy choices."
Welcoming the move, Jamie Oliver said: "This is a game-changing moment, protecting kids from relentless junk food advertising on their daily journeys to school and around our amazing city.
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“London now has the most overweight and obese children of any major global city. Sadiq is starting to use everything within his power to tackle this head on.
"This surely must give Mrs May and her Cabinet inspiration to do the right thing, be bold, be clear, and pull every lever they can to protect all British kids."
Last week, Mr Oliver called for the fizzy drink tax to be extended to milkshakes.
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Mr Khan's announcement was welcomed by a range of health campaigners who claimed it would make unhealthy food less attractive to children.
But Christopher Snowdon of the Institute of Economic Affairs told The Sun: "Khan’s gesture politics is likely to cost Transport For London a great deal of money and will not have any effect on obesity.
"The claim that 40 per cent of London children are overweight is based on a phoney measure and there is no credible evidence that advertising restrictions make any difference to diets. The mayor has jumped on Jamie Oliver’s bandwagon to get some cheap headlines."
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