Weight-loss jabs could get people ‘back into work’ to boost economy, Starmer says
New weight-loss jabs could get people “back into work” to boost the economy, the prime minister has said.
Sir Keir Starmer said injections could also help reduce pressure on the NHS.
“I think these drugs could be very important for our economy and for health,” the prime minister told BBC Breakfast.
“This drug will be very helpful to people who want to lose weight, need to lose weight, very important for the economy so people can get back into work.
“Very important for the NHS because, as I’ve said time and again, yes, we need more money for our NHS, but we’ve got to think differently.
“We’ve got to reduce the pressure on the NHS. So this will help in all of those areas.”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has suggested the jabs could be given to unemployed people to help them return to the workplace.
Mr Streeting, writing in The Telegraph, said: “Our widening waistbands are also placing significant burden on our health service, costing the NHS £11bn a year – even more than smoking. And it’s holding back our economy.
“Illness caused by obesity causes people to take an extra four sick days a year on average, while many others are forced out of work altogether.”
The health secretary also told Sky News’ Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge on Monday the jabs should not be used to get the “Instagram perfect body”.
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‘Shouldn’t use weight loss jabs as cosmetic drugs’
Researchers will examine the “real-world effectiveness” of Mounjaro, also known as tirzepatide, over a five-year period, as officials announced plans for new trials of the impact of the injections on getting people back to work.
A study by Health Innovation Manchester and Lilly, the world’s largest pharmaceutical company, will examine the drug’s impact on weight loss, diabetes prevention, the prevention of obesity-related complications and the impact on NHS use.
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It will also assess whether the drug will reduce people being forced out of work and if it has any impact on cutting sick days among employed people.
A previous study found Mounjaro, hailed as the “King Kong” of weight-loss jabs, helped people lose an average of 21% of their body weight over 36 weeks.
Read more:
Thousands denied weight loss jab due to slow NHS rollout
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Wegovy rollout slower than expected
Obesity costs the NHS about £6.5bn a year and is the second biggest preventable cause of cancer.
Studies show people lose on average 15% of their body weight within months of starting treatment with Wegovy, the brand name for semaglutide, which is also known as Ozempic.
The drug mimics a natural hormone and people feel fuller faster and for longer.
But thousands of people who could benefit from it are being denied access due to a slower than planned rollout in the health service, an investigation by Sky’s science correspondent Thomas Moore found.
Vienna-based Bitpanda is eyeing Frankfurt or New York for a future listing, with its co-founder warning that London’s IPO market is too illiquid to attract investors.
The meeting came as global regulators and traditional exchange associations have urged the SEC to crack down on tokenized stocks.
Politics
Migrants to be deported to France ‘within weeks’ – as Farage vows to scrap human rights law
Nigel Farage has said he would scrap the UK’s human rights law to enable the mass deportation of illegal migrants, as the government reportedly prepares to send more than 100 small boat arrivals back to France.
Writing in The Daily Telegraph ahead of a speech later today, the Reform leader said the Human Rights Act would be ripped up should he become prime minister.
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He would also take the country out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and other international treaties, describing them as “malign influences” which had been “allowed to frustrate deportations”.
Pulling Britain out of the ECHR would make it one of only three European countries not signed up – the others being Russia and Belarus.
The UK’s Human Rights Act, Reform say, would be replaced by a British Bill of Rights. This would only apply to British citizens and those with a legal right to live in the UK.
Small boat arrivals would have no right to claim asylum. They would be housed at old military bases before being deported to their country of origin, or third countries like Rwanda.
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Will Starmer’s migration tough talk deliver?
One in, one out
Sir Keir Starmer, meanwhile, is said to be ready to implement one of his major policies to tackle the small boats crisis within weeks.
According to The Times, the one in, one out migrant deal he signed with France’s Emmanuel Macron earlier this summer will soon see more than 100 people sent back.
The newspaper reported there are dozens of migrants currently in detention, including some arrested over the bank holiday weekend, who could be among the first sent back to France.
In exchange, the UK would be expected to take an equal number of asylum seekers in France with ties to Britain.
Read more: How will the one in, one out deal work?
Sir Keir Starmer hopes his deal with Emmanuel Macron will help. Pic: Reuters
A record 28,288 people have crossed the Channel in small boats this year. The total is 46% higher than at the same stage last year.
More boats were seen crossing on Monday, though the figures won’t be published by the Home Office until later.
Sir Keir is under mounting pressure within his own party to grip the issue, with Sir Tony Blair’s former home secretary Lord Blunkett warning the public “will turn on” him.
But they may already have – a YouGov poll over the weekend found 71% of people think the prime minister is dealing with the small boats crisis badly.
Protests have taken place outside hotels used to house asylum seekers over the weekend, and the government is braced for more legal challenges from councils over their use.
Labour have taken a battering in the opinion polls throughout 2025, with Reform consistently in the lead.
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