Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I very much welcome the opportunity to speak on the Protecting Children from Junk Food Advertising (Broadcasting Amendment) Bill 2008 because it gives this chamber a chance to consider a very important issue in our community: childhood obesity and its causes. The Rudd government is very concerned about child health and especially childhood obesity. The government not only is concerned about childhood obesity but is actively working on its causes and especially methods by which it can prevent this significant problem. The government is doing this through a multifaceted approach combining both prevention and regulation. The government is also developing approaches that are evidence based.

One of the main vehicles through which this government action is taking place is the Council of Australian Governments agenda. Through COAG, the government has committed $872 million over six years to preventative health. This represents the largest commitment ever by an Australian government in preventative health. These preventative health interventions will occur through preschools, schools and workplaces. These interventions will be designed to help people modify their lifestyle so they can reduce the risk of chronic disease. This significant contribution, not made by any previous government, comes on top of over $50 million already approved in the Rudd government’s first budget. That $50 million in funding focuses on obesity prevention strategies targeted directly at children. In the context of the bill that we are debating today, I would like to highlight some aspects of this new multifaceted approach.

We have a Healthy Kids Check for all four-year-olds to improve childhood health. This measure will ensure that every four-year-old child in Australia has a basic health check to see if they are healthy, fit and ready to learn when they start school. The Healthy Kids Check will promote early detection of lifestyle risk factors, delayed development and illness, and introduce guidance for healthy lifestyles and early intervention strategies. That is $26.5 million over four years that has been set aside for this important initiative. It will make a significant contribution to identifying risks of obesity in very small children.

The Get set 4 life—habits for healthy kids guide has been developed as an interactive guide that will provide practical information to assist parents to engage with their child to aid the development of healthy eating habits. The guide provides practical information for parents and illustrations which children can relate to. It is designed to support parents and carers with a child’s development and to reinforce the importance of establishing healthy life habits. It also includes a list of useful resources for families to get more information about the health and development of their children—exactly the kinds of skills that families need.

One of the projects which I think is most exciting is the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program, which has $12.8 million over four years. Up to 190 primary schools are receiving a grant of up to $60,000 to build vegetable gardens and kitchen facilities. The program teaches kids to grow their own healthy food, to prepare it and to make better eating choices. Indeed, the schools in which this program already exists find it incredibly worth while. Many of them are in disadvantaged areas. The program is transforming eating choices for kids in those communities.

Another program I particularly like is the Active After-schools Communities program by the Australian Sports Commission, with $12.4 million over four years. This encourages participation in after-school physical activity.