A year ago, 12 of the biggest names in Bradford politics lined up with one aim - a slim majority.

The desire to shed a few pounds and boost the profile of the authority's anti-obesity programme drew cross-party support but the initiative appears to have fizzled out since.

When the Telegraph & Argus contacted the group to measure their progress, five of the slimmers wouldn't even return our calls.

Two of those who did call back refused to tell us their present weight.

However, of the remaining five, four say they lost weight over the course of the year and one remained the same.

The project was organised by Councillor Michael McCabe (Con, Thornton & Allerton) but he denied it had been a waste of time: "It has not failed if more people have been made aware of the problems, and it just shows we are real people - it is hard."

However he laid some of the blame at the door of City Hall caterers who provide meals during meetings: "The food they provide is very unappetising - sandwiches and samosas. I was out all yesterday and when you get to a Council meeting you do not want to eat an onion bhaji that looks like it has been there for two days. A bowl of soup would be nice."