Veteran broadcaster Michael Buerk is best known for his hard-hitting journalism, but a controversial column from 2019 is drawing fresh scrutiny.
Ahead of his appearance on The Greatest TV of the 80s on Sunday (November 9), interest has reignited around Buerk’s headline-grabbing views on obesity and the suggestion that letting overweight people “die early” could help relieve pressure on the NHS.
Michael Buerk’s ‘fat-shaming’ comments
In a column for Radio Times, the Moral Maze host wrote: “The obese will die a decade earlier than the rest of us. See it as a selfless sacrifice in the fight against demographic imbalance, overpopulation and climate change.”
The journalist argued that obesity should not be viewed as a medical condition or a national crisis, but as the outcome of personal decisions.
“You’re fat because you eat too much,” he insisted, as reported by The Times. He added that while genetics and metabolism can play a role, the main factor is overconsumption.
Buerk also challenged the £6.1 billion figure cited by Public Health England as the annual cost of obesity to the NHS. He questioned whether longer-living “healthy” people might, in the end, cost more.
“How much would an obese person have cost if they were slim? If, instead of keeling over with a heart attack at 52, they live to a ripe, dementia-ridden old age requiring decades of expensive care? In any case, VAT on takeaways, confectionery and fizzy drinks more than covers it.”
He went on to argue that calling obesity a disease doesn’t destigmatise it, but may discourage accountability.
“Many think that by declaring it a disease, it will reduce the stigma of fatness and encourage people to seek treatment. They’re wrong on almost every count.”
He also argued that doctors should give advice, but refrain from using resources to help obese individuals. He said medics should “leave couch potatoes alone” and added that “they’re weak, not ill”.
‘Piling on the pounds in terms of taxes’
Buerk’s stance stirred fierce criticism at the time.
But some economists and researchers have suggested that, from a purely financial perspective, early deaths do lessen the long-term strain on state resources.
A 2008 Dutch study found that obese people do incur higher annual healthcare costs early in life. However, healthy individuals ultimately cost more because they live longer and require extended care in old age.
Still, many health professionals, including former NHS chief executive Simon Stevens, have warned of the long-term risks.
“If as a nation we keep piling on the pounds around the waistline, we’ll be piling on the pounds in terms of future taxes needed just to keep the NHS afloat,” Stevens previously said.
Catch Michael Buerk when The Greatest TV of the 80s airs Sunday (November 9) at 9:30pm on Channel 5.
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