This is a joint submission on behalf of our memberships to the Public Bill Committee of the Health and Care Bill. The Incorporated Society of British Advertisers (ISBA), the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA), the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB), and the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) represent the UK advertising industry and food and drink manufacturers. We welcome the opportunity to provide written evidence.
We and our members recognise the importance of reducing childhood obesity and are committed to playing our part. We have a history of supporting and partnering with Government to help the UK become a healthier nation. We believe that to tackle obesity, a holistic, evidence-based strategy is needed. However, rather than look at targeted measures to tackle the root causes of obesity, the Government has instead opted for further advertising restrictions. The measures proposed are disproportionate, unsupported by convincing evidence, and come at an unacceptable cost.