Councillors have voted to crack down on having fast food outlets in Greenwich’s high streets in a bid to combat an obesity crisis.

The council will also be scrapping chocolate and sugary drinks from vending machines and replacing them with healthier snacks as the number of unhealthy kids in the borough soars.

The move was made at a meeting on Wednesday, January 30, where councillors blamed government austerity for increasing poverty, bringing with it unhealthy lifestyles.

Councillor Linda Bird said: “The continued rise in obesity is linked to the rise of poverty.

“Low income, poor housing and cheap diets are a direct result of this government’s austerity.

“Obesity is an increasingly common problem – for many people modern living involves eating excess amounts of cheap, high-calorie foods.

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“We are living in a society where wages don’t keep up with inflation, forcing people into a poverty trap and into an unhealthy diet. The epidemic is rising with poverty.

“This is a serious problem. with serious consequences, and it is on our doorstep.”

Public Health England data shows 26 per cent of Greenwich’s reception-age children are obese, along with an “alarming” 40 per cent of Year 6 children.

The council passed a motion last night to review what’s being put in vending machines, and to make it more difficult for fast-food joints to get planning and licensing permission to open up in high streets.

Deputy leader David Gardner said the borough should try again to ban unhealthy outlets near schools following a failed attempt to have that in the borough’s core strategy.

“It is possible for children to have healthy diets that are affordable but it’s not just about food – it is about having an environment that encourages walking, where children feel safe to go cycling,” Cllr Gardner said.

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“That means a focus on healthy streets.

“We have to try again to overturn the inspectors decision when we had our last core strategy to throw out our proposals to ban junk food outlets within 400 metres of our schools.”

Opposition councillor Charlie Davis said while the idea was welcome, more should be done to encourage active lifestyles for children – not just taking a “nanny state” approach to combating the problem.

“I would encourage the council to take a broader approach to this issue, we cannot tackle childhood obesity by just focussing sugary snacks, we must take a two-pronged approach to be successful,” he said.