Health policy should be central to any discussion of city planning, particularly in the area of traffic management, according to the chief executive of the Food Safety Authority.
Dr Patrick Wall was discussing the potential adverse health effects associated with urban living at a conference in Dublin yesterday.
"Road accidents and the pollution problems associated with traffic make it imperative that the adverse consequences on public health resulting from traffic policies are foremost in the minds of planners before decisions are taken," he said. There were health considerations in every aspect of urban planning, he said. "We should have health policy in public planning, we should be looking for the health effects."
People had almost accepted there might be one or two killed daily on our roads, yet there had been uproar over the presumed risk associated with CJD. A ban on meat on the bone had been introduced despite the fact no one had died of CJD, he said, yet on the basis of the current level of road fatalities, "we should ban cars".
He also discussed the risks related to food safety. "The answer to the whole thing is not more policing. You won't police Ireland into a safe food culture," he said. Better results were available through more awareness and education for producers and consumers.
