Britain is facing an obesity crisis - and the likes of easyJet, British Airways and Ryanair need to start following Southwest Airlines' lead when it comes to addressing the problem.

The budget US airline has, rightly so, started charging plus-sized passengers for a second seat.

The message is, 'If you want to go on holiday but you're too fat and you're spilling over to someone else's seat, you will pay for two seats.'

To that, I say bring it on. Motivating a nation to lose weight and manage their weight isn't always about being overly polite, you have to hold people accountable. 

Many customers who've had to fork out extra have taken to social media to complain about the new 'Customer of Size' policy - but it's completely fair in my eyes.

Why should plane seats be made bigger to accommodate for a larger population? It would be normalising being overweight.

We need to keep the airline seats as they are because they also can help motivate a nation and give a wake up call to people. 

If airlines were to make seats bigger, then there's going to be, again, limited motivation to lose the weight.

Another concern is the cost being transferred onto other passengers. Larger seats mean potentially fewer seats or a bigger plane is needed. 

In the end, it would be us regular-sized people who would be penalised - subsidising the obese passengers.

I want a society that has balance - a balance between being compassionate, but also a society that actually says, 'No, you've got to take responsibility'.

Southwest Airlines is just one example of how carriers around the world are having to change their policies to adapt to their country's waistline - and I think British airlines should follow suit.

It would create a very positive domino effect. 

If people have their size and weight assessed before getting on a plane, and are told they have to pay more if they're too heavy - the mind gets more motivated. 

A large number of people will lose weight as a result, which will then bring obesity costs down in the NHS, which then has a positive effect on the taxpayer.

The recent NHS National Obesity Audit revealed how weight loss surgery in the UK skyrocketed between 2024 and 2025. 

The North East and North Cumbria areas came out particularly bad - with the region having some of the highest obesity levels in the country.

Obesity levels in adults in the UK increased sharply between 1993 and 2008, from 15 per cent to 25 per cent. Since then the rise has been more gradual, but still increasing, to around 30 per cent in 2024.

The slight increase in obesity levels over recent years surprises me given the huge surge in 'fat jabs'. But, I think it's fair to say we have encouraged the problem by making it acceptable. 

We've become very big in terms of fat acceptance and anyone that dares to mention the fat word these days is automatically called a 'fat shamer'. Political correctness really has taken over when it comes to weight loss.  

What we should be doing is looking at countries where they manage it really well. For example, Japan has a very much no-nonsense culture when it comes to obesity. 

If you're overweight you're told that you need to sort it out, you're given support, but you're also expected to own it and take responsibility.

It's very easy to blame the food manufacturers and it's very easy to blame the government. 

But, it's not about the food,

It's about the culture, and it's about the thinking that we've promoted around it.

Weight loss actually starts in the head. It doesn't start in the mouth. 

It starts with your mindset - and it's down to you to fix it, not airlines.