Saturday, November 13, 2010

Doctor wants Scottish politicians to enter political minefield by proposing minimum pricing for food, emergency doner kebab needed













Dear All

This week saw minimum pricing for alcohol defeated at Holyrood as unionist parties rallied round the flag.

Their stance for rejection of the proposal was that the poorest in society would be effected most.

The Labour Party spearheaded that opposition and their idea was for a UK wide solution based partly around measures in the taxation system.

If tax is put up poor people stay pay more.

And in that vain a Scottish doctor has come up with a new idea, a minimum price per calorie for food.

Being a doctor, money is the least of his problems but for the poor it certainly is.

Minimum price per calorie for food is a stupid idea in the extreme, which begs the question, how competent is this clown.

Poor people have a choice whether to use alcohol; they don’t have the same option regards eating.

And factor in this concept, people on benefits already are forced to buy the lowest quality of food so they can get quantity.

Dr Daniel Chandler’s proposal is intended to drive up the cost of fatty and sugary products.

Chandler said:

“It is true in general that highly processed items such as ready prepared meals and snacks such as chocolate, sweets and crisps are quite high in terms of calorie content but also affordable. That is a substantial problem in terms of encouraging people to eat less of these kinds of food, because they fill you up and they are easily accessible compared to fresh fruit and vegetables”.

So, is his idea to starve the poorest in society into health?

Chandler added:

“The price [for healthier foods] is more expensive when you look at it on a per-calorie basis.”

What is Chandler’s solution for wanting to create a food restriction policy?

Does he have a solution so the poorest in society can access more healthier and expensive foods?

No, he has a builders’ workie mentality, create a problem then fuck off and leave someone else to sort it out.

He choose the wrong profession, the construction industry missed out on a ‘good’ workie.

Chandler, a public health doctor for NHS Dumfries and Galloway, presented his case at the Scottish Public Health Conference in Dunblane.

I am sure his colleagues although entertained must be laughing their heads off, and perhaps Chandler has been in the provinces so long that he is unaware that Scotland demands solutions to problems, not problems created after ‘solving’ a problem.

Do it right, do it once!

Professor Mike Lean, expert in human nutrition at human rights abusing Glasgow University said there were problems with the proposal:

“We have a problem with malnutrition in the elderly. If you tax high-calorie food you will get a problem there. Athletic and fun-loving people need to eat more and do not want to be taxed because they want to eat a big lump of cheese when they have earned it.”

Are fat people not fun loving?

Although eating less food is desirable in some cases, this proposal will not guarantee a healthier population.

Slim doesn’t mean healthy.

Chandler said:

“There is merit in thinking more widely around if it could work and what the implications could be”.

Talk about blowing your own trumpet, ‘there is merit’?

“If such a measure was brought in I would be keen to see proposals for trying to make food that is more nutritious and less calorie dense more affordable.”

I am sure he is keen to see proposals if any politician was stupid enough to buy into this turkey.

Dr Richard Simpson, health spokesman for the Labour Party

“Minimum pricing for alcohol had serious problems and I think a minimum price per calorie would have similar problems.”

To solve the problem of obesity, the population has to be encouraged to be more active, that means Scotland has to provide proper training facilities and personnel to train and educate people.

Exercise must become more accessible, affordable and educational.

Forcing people to eat less because of cost causes too many problems and is unhelpful.

God I wish I was at that conference to heckle and rip him a new arse.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ah love a donnur kebaab me. Evrinthin oan... lovely... especially aifter ah full nights bevvinging...

Is this allowed? Free speech in ah that?

Anonymous said...

Like the other poster George, I love a doner kebab, it is time to fight for our rights. Stupid idea that will never fly. Actually I could go a doner kebab now.