THE Scottish Government has been asked to consider action to stop fast food outlets close to schools selling junk food to children.

Bob Doris, Maryhill and Springburn SNP MSP, has asked for action outside as well as inside schools.

As many as one in four five year-olds in Glasgow’s most deprived communities is overweight and one in eight is obese.

Mr Doris said: “Sometimes what happens outside the school grounds is as significant as what goes on in the school canteen.

“How will the Scottish Government address the wider issue this is something that I see in my constituency of many students having easy access, close to their schools, to the fast food outlets that offer the most unhealthy food of all?

Aileen Campbell, Public Health Minister, said measures were being looked at.

She said: One lever that is available to us is the planning system. We commissioned research on how best to use the planning system, alongside other measures, to create a healthier food environment”