The government's drive to reduce obesity is failing to persuade British adults and children to eat more healthily.

The Health Development Agency has revealed that obesity among children is rising at the rate of nearly one per cent a year.

Melanie Johnson, minister for public health, said: "This review once again highlights how crucial prevention is and how simple the message is; that by helping people maintain a healthy diet and an active lifestyle we can stop them gaining weight in the first place.

"That is why initiatives like the National School Fruit Scheme and the Food in Schools Programme, which are about improving children's diets and their understanding of healthy eating messages, are so crucial in tackling obesity.

"We also want to see much more progress from industry to reduce added levels of salt, fat and sugar in processed foods."

Forum Response: Health Development Agency

Dame Yve Buckland, chair of the Health Development Agency, said: "Parents can make a huge impact on rising levels of childhood obesity.

"The good news is that the evidence shows parents can successfully treat their child's obesity by actively changing the whole family's approach to diet and physical activity and by avoiding couch potato lifestyles.

"The myriad of child-focussed food advertising is a real challenge, but parents can fight back - it's them paying at the checkout, not their children."

Professor Mike Kelly, director of research and information at the Health Development Agency, said: "Our individual choices are not the only cause of this tide of obesity.

"We live in an 'obesogenic' environment - a plethora of fast food outlets, reliance on cars, and offers enticing us to eat larger portion sizes all contribute to the problem.

"Obesity is a health inequality issue - studies have shown that it is children from poorer backgrounds that are more likely to suffer weight problems. Also there is a higher prevalence in some ethnic groups and in different regions across the country.

"This shows that a combined approach is needed to tackle obesity."

Forum Response: Insulin Dependant Diabetes Trust

Jenny Hirst, co-chairman of the Insulin Dependant Diabetes Trust, told ePolitix.com: "Parents are the best weapon in the fight against obesity but they cannot do this alone.

"As long as schools have vending machines selling high sugar drinks and sweets and school lunches do not present examples of healthy eating, then their children are receiving mixed messages.

"Parents also need the support of legislation to assist them. There needs to be tighter controls over food and drinks advertising aimed at children and food labelling regulations should be overhauled to correct the many confusing and misleading claims that are presently made.

"A claim that a product is 80 per cent fat-free may sound healthy but it actually means that the product is 20 per cent fat and many so-called 'Light' products contain more fat than the Food Standards Agency designation for a low fat product. We need tighter regulations and better policing of them.

"As a charity for children and adults with diabetes we have witnessed the development of Type 2 diabetes in children mainly as a result of the rise in obesity that affects their insulin production and metabolism.

"Many of these children will suffer the damaging complications of diabetes at a young age unless strong action is taken not just by parents but by schools and government."