HR Industry News

Fattism should be unlawful

— 21 March 2007 —

A charity is stepping up its pressure to put obesity on the political agenda and force the government to make fattism unlawful.

The Obesity Awareness & Solutions Trust (TOAST) is drumming up support amongst MPs to make it illegal to discriminate against people because of their size.

The charity is calling for the government to take more action to tackle obesity and points to figures from a Commons committee which says the problem costs the UK economy up to £3.7 billion and accounts for 18 million sick days per year.

The patron of TOAST, Dr Brian Iddon MP, said the government should consider making it illegal to discriminate against people because of their size and points to the fact that it has already gone to great lengths in its efforts to abolish discrimination in several areas of social policy.

He sees it as an obvious next step that the government looks at discrimination against those who are overweight.

The charity's chief executive, Louise Diss, added that anti-discrimination legislation is part of the solution, but it will not stop people getting fat. She said it is not just about a change in the law, it is about discussing how to deal with the wider problem - and this should be led by the government.

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