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Anti-smoking charity chief and big tobacco adversary to retire
The CEO of anti-smoking charity ASH, Deborah Arnott, has announced she is to retire from the role after more than two decades.
A staunch adversary of big tobacco, Arnott has clocked up several campaign wins during her 21-year tenure that have changed the way tobacco is sold in the UK, including putting tobacco products out of sight in shops and the implementation of plain, standardised tobacco packs.
The ratcheting up of regulation – including the introduction of a ban on smoking in pubs and public places – has been accompanied by substantial declines in smoking prevalence, of more than half among adults.
At the time of her retirement, ASH said “parliament is expected to have passed revolutionary laws” which will raise the age of sale by one year each year “to create a smoke-free generation”. The legislation would mark “a fitting end to two decades of campaigning success”.
“I am proud to be leaving ASH at a good time and in safe hands,” Arnott said, “well on the way to delivery of our mission to eliminate the harm caused by tobacco. Our values, the strength of our team, the quality of ASH advocacy and networking, and our reputation and influence all stand us in good stead for the future. Whoever takes over from me is inheriting the leadership of an outstanding organisation.”
“What has been achieved in tobacco legislation over the last 21 years is in no small measure due to the brilliant work led by Deborah at ASH,” said Bob Blackman MP, chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking & Health. “Working in collaboration with politicians from across the political spectrum, she has built and sustained a truly cross-party consensus on ending the harms from smoking. As a result, I have no doubt MPs from every party will vote to create a smoke-free generation later this year. We have much to thank her for.”
Source: The Grocer, 14 February 2024
See also: ASH – CEO Deborah Arnott to retire
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HM Government sponsored article: Welcome to the smokefree generation: Soon it could be illegal to ever sell tobacco to anyone turning 15 this year or younger. Here’s why…
What's the best way to stop smoking? Not to start in the first place. Because, while, it's very easy to take your first drag, it's very difficult to take your last.
Each year, thousands of Brits desperately try to give up but cannot, substantially increasing their risk of serious illnesses – including strokes, diabetes and heart disease – and an early death.
Tobacco kills a staggering 80,000 people every year in the UK – nearly 220 a day – and cuts each smoker's life short by a decade.
Most smokers want to quit but it can be very difficult. Smoking is simply too addictive.
That's why the government has announced one of the most significant public-health measures in decades – making sure our children can never be legally sold tobacco. It plans to bring in new legislation to make it an offence to sell tobacco products to anyone born on or after January 1, 2009, creating our first-ever smokefree generation.
Last October, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced plans to introduce a smokefree generation by introducing legislation to make it an offence to sell tobacco to anyone born on or after 1 Jan 2009.
This would mean that anyone turning 15 this year or younger will never be legally sold such items, preventing future generations from ever taking up smoking.
This will not criminalise smoking, and those who can currently buy tobacco legally will still be able to do so.
Instead, tobacco sales will be phased out gradually, saving thousands of lives and billions of pounds for the NHS and our economy every year.
As well as ushering in new powers to fine rogue retailers, the government will provide £30 million of new funding to crack down on illicit tobacco and the sale of tobacco and vapes to underage people. It will also double the money available to fund local stop smoking services to nearly £140 million to help more people quit.
The new bill will also take action against youth vaping by reducing their appeal and availability to children. In the past three years, the number of youngsters using these devices has tripled, and one-in-five children admitted trying vaping in March and April last year alone.
Source: Daily Mail, 14 February 2024
See also: SFAC - Smokefree Generation Frequently Asked Questions
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Opinion: New tobacco and vaping legislation will go a long way to protect children’s health
Writing in the BMJ, Prof Sanjay Agrawal, specialist in respiratory medicine and Chair of the Royal College of Physicians Tobacco Advisory group and Consultant in Respiratory and Intensive Care Medicine, discusses how the proposed tobacco and vaping legislation will help protect the health of children.
Agrawal begins by stating just how lethal tobacco is, with millions of people dying from tobacco use across the world. Because of this, most countries take a combination of approaches to tobacco control and there is “broad agreement” of treating tobacco addiction.
Where countries differ, Agrawal adds, is the place e-cigarettes have in treating tobacco dependency. Vapes have become “seemingly ubiquitous in our communities”, with the biggest concerns arising from the rise in youth vaping rates, the environmental impact of disposables and the unclear health consequences of long-term vaping, especially when used recreationally rather than as a smoking cessation aid.
The UK Government has announced legislation which will prevent millions of children ever starting to smoke by increasing the legal age you are able to buy tobacco by one year every year whilst also applying restrictions on the availability and appeal of vapes to limit their appeal and use to young people, including a ban on disposables.
Agrawal writes that these solutions are not a “silver bullet” but will make tobacco control in the UK much stronger. Agrawal adds that there will be obstacles, primarily the tobacco industry who will attempt to undermine legislation and the need for “sustained” funding to enforcement agencies, such as trading standards, needed to ensure successful implementation of any new legislation.
Agrawal concludes by saying that the proposed legislation is ambitious and if successful, will improve the health of children “for decades to come”.
Source: BMJ, 14 February 2024
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Opinion: I’m a vaping barrister. Violent criminals have seized this market
Writing in the Sydney Morning Herald, Robert Richter, a leading criminal barrister in Australia, explains Australia’s 'de facto' ban on vapes and how this has increased criminal activity and does more harm than good.
Richter states that he was a heavy smoker and that he was only able to quit using a vape. He states that Australia’s “prohibitionist stance on vaping” has made it difficult for smokers to access the legal products needed to quit smoking and has also resulted in a burgeoning black market controlled by criminals. Richter adds that the black market serves roughly 90% of Australia’s 1.7 million vapers.
The author adds that this black market has become increasingly violent as gangs vie for control of the hugely profitable illicit market, with firebombings and violence increasingly common. The cost to the community from this market is huge as no tax is paid on illicit products and there is additional financial burden on law enforcement agencies.
Richter compares this situation to that of New Zealand’s who have a regulated vape market which has prevented the development of a large-scale black market whilst simultaneously helping to reduce smoking rates.
Richter compares this to other prohibitionist policies, such as alcohol ban in the United States, and argues that under such policies “drugs become more potent and more dangerous and fuel criminal networks”.
The author says the solution lies in having a well-regulated market, with vapes and liquids readily available to smokers whilst also implementing restrictions aimed at preventing youth uptake. Concluding, Richter says that Australia’s “approach to vaping is case study in how not to handle a public health challenge”.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald, 14 February 2024
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Italian watchdog fines BAT and Amazon over misleading advertising
Italy's AGCM competition watchdog has fined British American Tobacco (BAT) and Amazon a combined 7 million euros ($7.5 million) over misleading advertising for heated tobacco products.
BAT was fined 6 million euros and Amazon 1 million euros for failing to provide sufficient information to consumers about the nicotine content and corresponding health risks from using the Glo Hyper X2 and Glo Hyper Air products, AGCM's statement said.
Street and online advertising presented the products as "simple electronic devices" and "design objects", the regulator said.
"This is seriously misleading conduct that leads consumers to purchase a product that poses health risks and is prohibited for minors," it said.
BAT's Glo device, which is sold on Amazon's online platform, does not itself contain nicotine but is used with tobacco sticks that do include nicotine.
The Italian antitrust regulator launched its investigation in April 2023, accusing the two companies of not clearly stating that the heaters were for adults only and noting that they were marketed as "nicotine-free".
At the time, Reuters found an Amazon offer for Glo Hyper X2 presenting the product as "the cigarette alternative, a smokeless and odour-free experience, nicotine-free".
The same product is now sold with the following warning: "Not for sale to minors. This product, when used with related tobacco or nicotine sticks, cartridges or refills is not risk-free and provides nicotine."
Source: Daily Mail, 14 February 2024
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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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