"Blair calls for lifestyle change", shouts the BBC News headline. It's not often I agree with Blair, I thought, but this time I do. What I fancy – by way of a lifestyle change – is a month in Barbados, playing tennis, swimming, chilling, and generally living the good life. Unfortunately I don't have any rich chums out there who could put me up for a few weeks.
But it seems this is not what the PM had in mind. He wants people to "take more responsibility for their health" to relieve pressure on the NHS. Not, you may notice, for their own benefit, but to cut costs and reduce the workload of the NHS.
Of course, not being fat, and not smoking, and not overdoing the alcohol, are all good things. Not because they save the NHS money, but because life is just better that way. But it's not going to happen by nannying about and banning junk food advertising (nor by opening the pubs 24 hours a day).
It needs education (with a small 'e') and more genuine opportunities for a more active life. Plus the time to enjoy it. Less testing and exams at school, less pressure and targets at work. Not selling off school playing fields for housing development. Sport in school time, not as an afterthought. A safer environment for cycling (and that doesn't mean half-baked and ill thought out cycle paths), especially for kids, who are less traffic-aware and assertive. More activity holidays, without Health and Safety standing over the leaders. Extending, not cancelling guided walks in the Lake District because they attract the wrong colour of skin...
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