Meeting of the Parliament 13 June 2018
Like other members, I congratulate Graeme Dey on bringing this issue to the Parliament. Mr Dey has campaigned on the subject for many years in Angus and nationally and, in part, it is thanks to him that there has been a welcome shift in the approach of retailers to the sale of energy drinks. He has truly rolled up his sleeves and got on with helping to kick-start a shift in encouraging responsible retailing and improving our nation’s health. I underline my thanks to Graeme Dey for bringing his motion to the chamber and giving us all an opportunity to talk about our concerns and, where possible, where solutions lie.
Many other members from across the chamber have also been involved in showing leadership, and I have thoroughly appreciated the constructive tone taken in the debate, as well as the views and ideas that members have shared with us.
Brian Whittle noted what he had seen at a polling station. We similarly heard about a political theme from Bruce Crawford, who suggested that he grew some wings in order to continue his canvassing. Maybe that explains why he is so fleet at getting up those closes when we are out canvassing. I hope that he sticks to good old-fashioned soup and a cup of coffee or tea at the next by-election, wherever that may be.
The topic is of significant concern to our society, especially to parents, teachers and young people. I am a parent. My wee boy has yet to hit those years where he is more susceptible to purchasing energy drinks. Although we want to and must do all that we can for children and young people in the here and now, the culture change that we want must include a large preventative element, to ensure that younger children grow up in an environment that is conducive to good health. In that way, the benefits would be long term and generational.
The health and wellbeing of our young people is a responsibility that we all share. It transcends party politics, which is probably why tonight’s debate has been so constructive. Improving the Scottish diet is important. Our forthcoming diet and healthy weight delivery plan reflects the priority that we attach to the issue. As members know from the Deputy First Minister’s launch of the consultation on school food last week, it is a top priority for Government more generally. The issue cuts across portfolios and dealing with it in that way reflects an attempt to encourage good health and wellbeing and requires us to use all the levers that we have across Government.
Our proposed amendments to the school food and drink regulations would move them closer to the Scottish dietary goals. They would see a tightening of the stringent standards by restricting sugar-free drinks containing more than 150mg of caffeine a litre in secondary schools. We also propose that primary schools should be allowed to serve only water and plain milk or milk alternatives.
The regulations do not allow any energy drinks to be made available at any time in school, and schools are encouraged to consider their health promotion duties when setting their own policies about what products they allow their pupils to bring into the school.
I welcome moves that have been taken by schools, such as St Ninian’s high school in Kirkintilloch or Blairgowrie high school in Perthshire, to restrict energy drinks. Mairi Gougeon mentioned the measures that have been taken by Forfar academy, which I also welcome. We should support those schools, share that good practice and celebrate the priority that they place on good health.
I very much liked Mark Ruskell’s contribution on the culture of eating food in school. It is important that we change the culture so that there is more enjoyment of food in the school setting. We could, for example, slow down the pace at which children and young people have their school dinners.
Although the European Food Safety Authority has confirmed that energy drinks are safe to consume, everyone, including the British Soft Drinks Association, acknowledges that they should not be marketed to those under 16. As Mairi Gougeon, Jackie Baillie and others have mentioned, aside from their caffeine content, many energy drinks contain extremely high levels of added sugar. Indeed, a 500ml bottle could contain about double the daily recommended maximum for an adult.
Many members have linked energy drinks more generally to wider health concerns. In Scotland, as others have pointed out, 29 per cent of children are at risk of becoming overweight; that includes 14 per cent who are at risk of becoming obese. Evidence shows that obese children are likely to stay obese into adulthood and become more likely to suffer health problems, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, at a younger age.
We have set a guiding ambition to halve child obesity in Scotland by 2030. In the new diet and healthy weight delivery plan, I will outline the necessary actions to achieve that and to help everybody make healthier choices about food and drink. We will also be cognisant of the call to weave in what we have heard this evening about energy drinks and ensuring that, as Brian Whittle and others have said, we use every platform that we have to ensure consistency across all that we do.
It is not just our children’s health that should concern us, but their ability to learn. Teachers in particular have expressed concern through their trade unions about the potential impact on attainment.
Graeme Dey articulated the concern about not just the ability of children to learn but their behaviour more generally, which he picked up from the discussions that he has had with his local school, as did Bruce Crawford. A 2016 study that looked at more than 2,000 children found that energy drink consumption was consistently associated with low school performance, so we are right to be concerned. That shows that we must make sure that we consistently use the platforms that we have across Government to make the impact that we all agree needs to be made.
I am confident that schools up and down the country are taking appropriate steps to tackle the issue but, of course, the work that schools do is only one part of the solution. Retailers around schools must act responsibly, which is why I welcome the recent statement by the National Federation of Retail Newsagents. We will continue to work with the Scottish Grocers Federation on help that we can provide to convenience stores on how to restrict sales of energy drinks; Graeme Dey and Mark Ruskell raised that issue. Other retailers have taken voluntary action to ban the sale of energy drinks to young people under the age of 16. We sincerely thank all those that have done so and urge any that have not yet made that commitment to do so as soon as possible.
As members know, reshaping the food environment is a key programme for government commitment. Research that was commissioned by the Government that explores the relationship between the food environment and the planning system is drawing to a close. That research considers how the planning system can best support the creation of an improved food environment in Scotland, including in the area around schools, and it identifies effective and less-effective approaches that have been taken elsewhere. As I have said many times, it is a case of using all the levers across Government to have a positive influence on good health in our communities.
Society is not just about school or the school environment, so we need to look beyond schools. My officials have started discussions with Sporta, which is the co-ordinating body for leisure trusts, on whether measures can be taken by its members to place age restrictions on the sale of energy drinks to under-16s. Such action has already been taken by Edinburgh Leisure and West Lothian Leisure, and I commend them for doing so. Sporta’s members manage around 1,300 facilities in Scotland that include everything from gyms to museums, which a considerable number of young people visit, so that is an important development that we will continue to pursue.
I again thank Graeme Dey for giving us the opportunity to debate this important issue and the chance to demonstrate the Government’s on-going commitment to supporting young people in making healthier choices. What better year to do that than in the year of young people. Scotland is at its best when we work together, whether with our health boards, our schools, our local authorities or with retailers and manufacturers. If we work collectively on the issue, we can take the action that needs to be taken. That is why the work that Graeme Dey has been doing to apply pressure and to encourage voluntary action is good. We can consider what else we need to do in the future, but the success that we are having in the here and now can be built on as we seek to create the healthier Scotland that all of us agree needs to be achieved.
Meeting closed at 18:03.