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** 21 July 2023
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** UK
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** No plans to make vapes prescription-only, Government says (#1)
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** North East cancer survivors visit the Houses of Parliament to urge action to stop smoking (#2)
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** Government insists the gambling review is on course as wait for white paper consultations continues (#3)
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** Scotland: Minimum unit price for alcohol set to rise (#4)
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** Link of the week
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** HALF the public think the Government is not doing enough to reduce smoking FOUR YEARS after the Government pledged to make England smokefree (#5)
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** Opinion: Optimistic targets aren’t enough – this is what we need to see to transform cancer survival (#6)
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** Submissions open for the Liverpool Tobacco Control Plan consultation (#7)
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** UK
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** No plans to make vapes prescription-only, Government says

The Government currently has no plans to make e-cigarettes prescription-only as calls mount for more restrictions on vapes in a bid to stop children accessing them.

Conservative MP Dr Neil Hudson asked the House of Commons about the “potential merits” of restricting the sale of vapes by making them prescription-only.

In a written statement, Neil O’Brien of the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), said: “No formal assessment has been made.

“There are no medicinally licensed vaping products approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. As such, the Government is not currently considering making vaping products prescription-only.”

It comes after MPs called for heavier restrictions on vape packaging and marketing in a bid to deter children from taking up the habit.

The Health and Social Care Committee said there is an “alarming trend” of children using e-cigarettes and they should be displayed with plain packaging in line with other tobacco products.

The committee said it believes the messaging around vaping as a tool to help smokers quit can be maintained, but more should be done on education, enforcement and regulations to keep them out of the reach of children.

The chair of the Health and Social Care Committee, Steve Brine, called for “decisive action” from the Government, adding: “It’s clear to us that the vaping industry has not gone far enough to ensure that its products don’t appeal to children.”

A spokesperson for public health charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) welcomed the call from the Health and Social Care Committee, but said prescription-only e-cigarette would be a “step too far”.

“Further regulations on vapes are needed to make products less appealing and less affordable for children,” she said.

“However, prescription-only products are a step too far and would currently put the health of smokers at risk. Vaping is a proven quitting aid which is much less harmful than smoking and it is not in the interests of public health for vapes to be less accessible to smokers than the much more harmful product; tobacco.”

Source: The Daily Mail, 20 July 2023

See also: ASH – Response to youth vaping consultation ([link removed])
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** North East cancer survivors visit the Houses of Parliament to urge action to stop smoking

Two North East cancer survivors joined stop smoking organisations and MPs at a Westminster event to urge the Government to act faster to end smoking.

South Shields' Sue Mountain and Cathy Hunt from Crook, both 57, are both survivors of smoking-related cancer. And on Wednesday both women joined campaign group Fresh at an event held by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health in Whitehall - and urged the Government to step up.

The women have been the faces of a "smoking survivors" TV advertising campaign in the North East this summer - and both are vocal in their hope to see the end of cigarettes and smoking. This comes as figures from a survey from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) and carried out by YouGov found 50% of people in the North East want more done to cut smoking.

Ailsa Rutter OBE, director of Fresh said: “It is clear that action on smoking is not just needed but wanted. We need bold new measures to reduce smoking as one of the biggest pressures on communities, on local authorities, on our NHS and on our economy.

"Tobacco companies profit from the death and addiction and it is time they are held more accountable for the harm they cause.”

Regional health figures Dr Ruth Sharrock - a consultant in Gateshead - and Amanda Healy - County Durham's director of public health - both also backed the calls for more action.

Dr Ruth Sharrock said: "Up to two out of every three long term smokers will die from smoking and every day on our wards I see the widespread, devastating effects. For regions like the North East higher smoking rates are still resulting in more cancers and respiratory diseases.

Source: Chronicle Live, 20 July 2023

See also: ASH – National public opinion press release ([link removed]) | ITV news – Interview with cancer survivors ([link removed])

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** Government insists the gambling review is on course as wait for white paper consultations continues

The UK government has insisted the timetable to implement the proposals put forward in its gambling review is on track, despite the first wave of consultations emerging from its white paper having yet to appear.

Among the issues set to be consulted on is the implementation of controversial financial risk checks for punters.

The government published its long-delayed white paper entitled 'High stakes: gambling reform for the digital age' at the end of April and said it expected its main measures to be in force by the summer of 2024.

The government and Gambling Commission are due to launch consultations this summer, with financial risk checks falling under the remit of the industry regulator and due to launch before the school holidays. The House of Commons rose yesterday without any of the consultations having yet been published.

The subject was raised in Culture, Media and Sport questions in the House of Commons on Thursday by shadow minister Alex Davies-Jones.

She said: "Affordability checks and stake limits for online gambling are of course welcome, but given that the government has already spent three years reviewing and consulting on gambling laws, why do we need further consultation on what levels they should be set at?

"There should be no more unnecessary delays. I ask the minister, what exactly has the government been doing all this time?"

Source: The Racing Post, 20 July 2023

See also: Department for Culture, Media and Sport – Gambling White Paper ([link removed])
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** Scotland: Minimum unit price for alcohol set to rise

The price of a six-pack of lager or a bottle of wine would rise by around £3 under plans being considered by Scottish ministers to stem problematic drinking.

The Scottish government has been surveying businesses in the drinks industry about a potential increase in the minimum price for alcohol.

The questionnaire, addressed to both alcohol producers and sellers, asks businesses to estimate what proportion of their products would be affected by a rise in the minimum unit price (MUP) from 50p to between 60 and 80p per alcohol unit.

The current minimum was set at 50p per 8g unit of alcohol in 2018, when the policy was introduced by the SNP as part of a strategy designed to stem harmful drinking, but is due to expire next year.

The Scottish government has not settled on any specific increase and its final report on the policy will be published later this year.

The impact of the policy has been hotly debated. A report published by Public Health Scotland and Glasgow University estimated that around 150 deaths and 400 hospital admissions due to alcohol have been averted each year since the policy was introduced, with the largest reductions in deprived areas.

Research from Sheffield University, by some of the same academics that played a role in the SNP’s decision to introduce the minimum unit price, also found that the policy had failed to reduce alcohol consumption among the heaviest drinkers.

Dr Alastair MacGilchrist, chairman of Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems, said: “Minimum unit pricing has achieved its intended effect of reducing alcohol consumption and harms. This has been evidenced by the Public Health Scotland final evaluation, which was published last month.

“However, as long as the level remains fixed at 50p (the level proposed when approved by parliament 11 years ago and unchanged since it came into effect in 2018), the effectiveness of MUP is being continuously eroded by inflation.”

The group has called for an increase to at least 65p per unit when MSPs decide on the matter later this year.

Source: The Times, 20 July 2023

See also: Public Health Scotland - Minimum unit pricing reduces alcohol-related harm to health ([link removed](PHS)%20has,addressing%20alcohol%2Drelated%20health%20inequalities.)
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** Links of the Week
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** HALF the public think the Government is not doing enough to reduce smoking FOUR YEARS after the Government pledged to make England smokefree

Recently published data shows that the public believe further action is needed to tackle smoking. Progress has stalled and Cancer Research UK estimate it will be missed by 9 years. Smoking is currently still killing one person every five minutes in England.

The ASH Smokefree GB survey carried out by YouGov finds that 49% of adults in England think the Government is not doing enough to address smoking, many more than the 28% who think the Government is doing about right, with only 7% saying they are ‘doing too much’. There is overwhelming majority support for further action to:

• Place a levy on tobacco companies (76% support, 7% oppose)
• Raise the age of sale to 21 (65% support, 13% oppose)
• Tobacco retail licensing (83% support, 4% oppose)
• Increasing government investment in public education campaigns (69% support, 9% oppose)
• Pack inserts to motivate quitting (66% support, 9% oppose)

You can read the full press release as well as access the data set here ([link removed]) .
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** Opinion: Optimistic targets aren’t enough – this is what we need to see to transform cancer survival

Writing for Cancer Research UK, Steve Brine, the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee, reflects on targets for reducing wait times for cancer patients seeking treatment, how these targets have been missed and what can be done to bring wait times down.

Brine begins by saying that “innovation is at the core of the ambitions on cancer in the NHS Long Term Plan” and how these innovations can be implemented into frontline clinical settings will be crucial to achieving targets.

Brine goes on to say that limiting the number of people that develop cancer is also an important part in improving cancer survival rates. It is estimated that 40% of cancers are preventable and that one of the biggest drivers of preventable cancer is smoking. He states that “Cancer prevention is a key workstream in our major inquiry on preventing ill-health. ([link removed]) ”

Lastly, Brine writes that there is need to tackle the workforce crisis as the NHS was short of cancer specialists. Strengthening the workforce will result in improved cancer survival rates.

Source: Cancer Research UK, 19 July 2023
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** Submissions open for the Liverpool Tobacco Control Plan consultation

The Liverpool Public Health team is developing a new Tobacco Control Plan for Liverpool and wants to hear from residents.

Cllr Harry Doyle, Cabinet Member for Health, Wellbeing and Culture, said: “In the absence of any clear national direction we want to continue Liverpool’s long-held leadership of the Tobacco Control agenda.

“We are therefore proposing to produce our own clear plan which sets out the support that will be provided to every smoker in the city to help them quit.

“We also want to ensure children, young people, and adults alike are able to live healthier lives, by minimising the exposure for the whole community from the health problems caused by secondhand smoke. This is particularly important with children because their bodies are still growing. Infants and young children are especially affected by health issues caused by second-hand smoke”.

The consultation is for people living within the Liverpool City Council boundary. The closing date is 4 August 2023 and can be accessed through the council’s consultations webpage ([link removed]) .

Source: Liverpool City Council, 19 July 2023
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For more information email [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) or visit www.ash.org.uk
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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.

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