South London: Junk food, vape and gambling ads to be banned in Kingston as people are too fat and unhealthy

Kingston Council is planning to introduce a healthier advertising policy to limit the promotion of unhealthy products on sites it owns.

The policy is set to ban adverts for food and non-alcoholic drinks which are high in fat, sugar and salt, alcohol, gambling products and services, tobacco and related products, including vapes, on council-owned sites and services. It would be up to the council to decide whether an advert complies with the policy.

A new report by council officers said the policy aims to improve residents’ health by reducing their exposure to unhealthy products, in turn slashing consumption of these products. The council’s people committee will vote on whether to approve the adoption of the policy on June 17.

Kingston’s joint strategic needs assessment in 2023 found the top five risk factors for ill health and premature mortality for adults were tobacco, alcohol, high body mass index, poor diet and high systolic blood pressure. It revealed a rising rate of diabetes in the borough, with more than 2,000 new cases likely linked to excess weight over the last decade.

The assessment also found the fourth most common cause of ill health for children aged zero to five years old was tobacco, while it was alcohol for those aged between five and 19 years old.

The report said introducing the policy would “support strategic and operational plans to address the rising rates of obesity and chronic disease in the borough”. A total of 24 local authorities across the UK have already passed a healthier advertising policy, according to the report, including nine London boroughs.

The report added: “The healthier advertising policy will restrict advertising of harmful products on all council-owned estates, assets and through procured advertising service contracts. This will apply to new contracts, with existing contracts adopting this policy when they are renewed.”