"Recent studies have shown that school aged children in this province are among the most obese in Canada," said Mr. Reid. "In light of these reports, Minister Hedderson should be proactive, follow the lead of Ontario, and implement some sort of restrictions on what foods are made available to our children while attending school.

"In recent conversations that I have had with dieticians, teachers and principals, they are concerned that young people are consuming more and more junk food during the day. Many cafeterias only offer deep fried foods and local fast food restaurants are now distributing their menus directly to children while they are in their classrooms. In addition to this, vending machines filled with chips, soft drinks and candy bars are starting to appear in many school corridors.

"While it may not be possible to eliminate all types of unhealthy food from schools, some type of initiative must be launched to encourage children to make healthy choices, and more importantly, schools should ensure that this type of food is available for their consumption. This is an investment that will improve the health of our young people in the future and ultimately ensure they live longer, healthier lives.

"The Tory election platform stressed the importance of physical education in schools. This government now says they do not have the money to strengthen and expand this program. Introducing new guidelines that would monitor what foods are available in our school is a cost effective initiative that would help improve the diets of our students. If the will of government is to improve the health of our young people, this is an initiative that could be a good first step towards that goal."