20 April 2005 - Green Euro-MP Caroline Lucas has condemned Labour pledges to improve childrens’ diets as empty rhetoric for falling short orf banning junk food adverts aimed at children.

Dr Lucas, South-East England MEP and Green Party Principal Speaker, has called on Labour to "follow the Green lead" and implement "no less than a full child junk food advertising ban", in the light of Labour’s pledge to review - but not ban - advertising of junk food to children.

She said: "It is not enough to promise a review. We have a specific responsibility towards children - they don’t tend to have a free choice and they don’t have the necessary information or understanding to make informed choices either. The empty rhetoric of promises is not enough, urgent action is needed now."

She continued: “Spiralling levels of obesity and food poverty were enough to make Greens take action a long time ago. Labour, always on the back foot as far as radical thinking goes, is now making a belated attempt to jump on the band wagon of child’s health."

"Greens have long been campaigning, especially in the European Parliament, for detailed proposals to regulate marketing of unhealthy food and children. We have seen the public health benefits of banning tobacco advertising and governments must now have the courage to take the same approach with unhealthy food, at least where children are concerned."

Dr Lucas introduced a Written Declaration – the Brussels parliament’s equivalent of an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons – calling for a junk food ads ban over a year ago.

“In recent weeks growing awareness of the role diet plays in overall health and programmes such as Jamie Oliver’s ‘School Dinners’ have simply highlighted what Greens have been saying for years - we are running a grave risk when we toy with our children’s health and thus their future.”

ENDS