ONE in five children in the North-East is "very overweight" - according to Government figures that show the obesity problem has reached epidemic levels.

Department of Health figures reveal the number of clinically obese youngsters under the age of 11 in the North-East is the highest in the country.

Research states that 18.3 per cent of children aged between two and ten are said to be "very overweight".

Last night, the figures sparked a fresh political debate between the main parties, with the Tories quick to describe the Government's public health policies as an abject failure.

Meanwhile, health professionals in the North-East said they confirmed their worst fears, while there were warnings that today's youngsters were creating a health time-bomb.

Dr David Walker, acting regional director of public health for the North-East, said: "Unfortunately, these figures confirm what we suspected.

"They reinforce the importance of tackling this problem before the affected youngsters become obese adults and suffer all the health complications that come with this condition.

"The North-East already has the worst health in the country so we urgently need to develop effective measures to reverse this worrying trend."

The Department of Health said that, based on data gathered between 1995 and 2003, the proportion of children nationally aged two to ten who were very overweight rose from 9.9 per cent to 13.7 per cent. Only London had an obesity problem on a similar scale to the North-East, with 18.2 per cent of youngsters classed as very overweight.

In contrast, the lowest proportion of overweight two to ten-year-olds (11.4 per cent) is in the neighbouring region of Yorkshire.

Dr Ian Campbell, of the National Obesity Forum, said the figures were alarming.

He said: "Clearly, we are in the middle of an epidemic that is wreaking havoc on our children.

"Now is the time to stop it. The optimal time to intervene is in childhood, before irreversible damage has been done and while lifelong good habits can be learnt."

Youngsters living in inner city areas were particularly prone to obesity, the Department of Health study found.

And children of parents who were themselves obese were much more likely to be overweight.

Andrew Lansley, the Conservative spokesman on health, singled out poor-quality school meals and a decline in school sport as factors in the rise.

He said: "The fact is, Labour did not raise the school meal issue until Jamie Oliver's TV programme, and they have done nothing to stop the decline in school sport."

But Health Minister Rosie Winterton said the Conservatives had "blocked us every step of the way".

Last year, the Government published a Public Health White Paper outlining measures to combat obesity, which included action on the advertising of unhealthy foods targeted at children.

She said: "The Tories will do nothing. They reject any action on food labelling, restricting advertising of junk food to children. And they voted against funding for school nurses."

Carole Dudley, senior health promotions specialist at Easington Primary Care Trust, in East Durham, said they were promoting "five a day" healthy fruit and vegetable options in its 31 primary schools, and working with parents to encourage youngsters to do more physical activity.

She said: "We're investing quite a considerable amount in developing a weight management service in this area to tackle this problem.

"It is vital that we treat those children who are already identified as obese and also try and concentrate on prevention to stop the year-on-year rise in obesity rates."