Parliamentary Secretary for Sport Chris Agius told Parliament yesterday that the government was considering the building of another national swimming pool as the present one could not cater for all those who would like to make use of its facilities.

Speaking during the second reading of the Healthy Lifestyle (Reducing Obesity) Bill, Mr Agius also said that an architectural study on the national swimming pool at Tal-Qroqq had revealed serious infrastructural damage.

He regretted that while the necessary works were being carried out, there would be some inconvenience being caused to regular users. However, people’s safety came first.

Mr Agius said the pool was being refurbished with new showers and changing rooms, which should be ready by April.

Earlier, the parliamentary secretary quoted studies showing that the longer one was obese, the more difficult it would be to make any changes.

The burden on the country’s health infrastructure would increase. The expense of those who were obese amounted to 30 per cent more than those who were of normal weight.

New squash facilities should be considered as this sport was growing in popularity and the existing courts were always fully booked

Research showed that men were more physically active than women, while among those who were over 55 years old, 75 per cent hardly did any exercise.

In Malta only 24 per cent did any form of exercise, even though it had been proven that a sedentary lifestyle was the biggest cause of death.

Mr Agius suggested that new squash facilities should be considered as this sport was growing in popularity and the existing courts were always fully booked. Rowing was another discipline which should be encouraged among the young so that the tradition of the regatta would not die out.

He also mentioned canoeing and rock climbing, which were being taken up by more and more enthusiasts. More swimming schools should be opened up near beaches.

He did not feel the open air gyms which had been set up by some councils were being made use of and money allocated for more of these gyms should instead be spent on cycle lanes and subsidies to join private gyms.

In the past, many children used to go to school on foot, but nowadays even short distances were covered by car, which was encouraging a lazy lifestyle. He said the proposal to stop junk food from being sold from shops next to schools needed to be looked into carefully and not be rushed.

While obesity had been discussed for many years, no action had been taken to tackle the problem. Obesity led to serious health problems such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and hypertension. One million deaths around the world every year were caused by problems related to obesity.

Mr Agius referred to obesity among children, adding that these often suffered from low self-esteem. He said that Malta had one of the highest rates of obese and overweight children in Europe.

The situation as regards the adult population was also of concern, with Malta having the highest rate of obese males in Europe. Maltese females were second only to Iceland as the most obese in Europe.

The Bill was unanimously given a second reading.