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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 11 Hansard (25 September) . . Page.. 3188 ..

MS GALLAGHER (continuing):

because, as children are sitting watching television and not exercising, they are being bombarded with commercials for unhealthy foods high in sugar, salt and fat.

Australia has one of the highest rates of advertising during children's television programming and a high proportion of that is for highly processed junk-type foods. If a child watches an average of 21/2 hours of television a day, over a year they will watch approximately 22,000 advertisements. Around a third of these ads will be for food, although this can be higher during children's television times. A nutritional analysis of food advertised in the UK found that, overall, 95 per cent of the advertisements for food were for foods high in fat and/or sugar and/or salt. This analysis is broadly consistent with the situation in other countries, including Australia.

Many food advertisements are aimed directly at children, often linking junk food with toys or popular children's television and movie characters. The advertisements frequently include product prizes or competitions and are presented in highly colourful and appealing formats that are specifically designed to attract children's attention. These advertisements are rarely, if ever, countered by messages about healthy eating and the current ABA guidelines for advertising directed at children do not deal with a community responsibility to promote healthy lifestyle practices.

Increasingly, various health organisations are recognising the link between childhood obesity and TV advertising directed at children. The New South Wales Childhood Obesity Summit had, amongst its recommendations, a resolution requesting that the regulatory framework for food advertising directed at children aged nought to eight be reviewed in recognition that food advertising is one of the factors contributing to the prevalence of eating habits that may promote obesity.

Resolution 8.2 of the summit recommended that the Commonwealth government conduct an independent review of the current regulatory framework governing food advertising in the media to ensure, firstly, maximum clarity and effectiveness of regulations and their operation and, secondly, a media environment that promotes balanced, healthy eating and lifestyle choices. A further resolution requested that a systematic scientific review of the potential impact of media and food advertising on diet, physical activity and childhood obesity be undertaken.

Clearly, the motion today is not particularly out of the ordinary. Rather, it is part of a growing realisation that the health of our children is affected by a number of factors and that, where obesity is concerned, we need to take a multifaceted approach and examine all the influences on children's lifestyle choices. In fact, as early as 1982, the Australian Broadcasting Tribunal's national television standards survey revealed that there was a consistently strong community opinion in favour of tighter controls of TV food advertising aimed at children. The links between TV advertising and healthy eating habits are obvious and we need to examine whether advertising standards are as responsible as they should be.

Other countries have recognised that children, because of their innocence and inability to judge critically, deserve protection from advertisers. Since 1991, Sweden has banned advertising directed at children aged under 12 and does not allow advertising at all during children's programs. Norway has similar restrictions. The sponsorship of children's programs is not permitted in Denmark, Finland, Norway or Sweden. Greece

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