Half an hour of daily PE should be mandatory in primary schools – Noone

Fine Gael Dublin Senator, Catherine Noone, has today (Monday) urged schools to consider making a half an hour of Physical Education (PE) a mandatory daily requirement for primary pupils. Her comments come after a Safefood Ireland survey showed 90% of parents believe 30 minutes of school time should be devoted to PE every day.

“We are bottom of the EU league in terms of the time spent on PE in our schools, with Irish children getting just over half the EU average of 109 minutes of physical education. By making a half hour of daily exercise mandatory in the primary school timetable, we can move to the top of the table and slash childhood obesity rates in the process.

“According to research published by Safefood Ireland, 90% of parents want a half hour of exercise to be included in the school day. If parents are already behind the idea, it’s now time for schools to consider making it a reality.

“The fact that we are ranked fifth in Europe for obesity among young women and girls should act as a wake-up call, as should the fact that 26.5% of girls and 16% of boys under 20 are now considered obese. We need to help prevent our current generation of children from becoming overweight adults.

“Our childhood obesity problem isn’t going to solve itself. Only through a combined approach of better education, healthier diets and more exercise can we comprehensively tackle this problem. Incorporating just 30 minutes of PE into every school day could make a big difference for generations to come.”

ENDS