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Lobbying from health harming industries must be addressed, report claims
The report from the Alcohol Health Alliance, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) and the Obesity Health Alliance (OHA) has highlighted how health harming industries use shared strategies to delay or disrupt public health policies to protect their business models.
Common tactics include downplaying the potential harms linked to their products, using legal threats, and creating misleading narratives about individual responsibility.
The report calls on MPs to:
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Avoid conflicts of interest and reject corporate hospitality (such as tickets to sporting or cultural events) from unhealthy product industries
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Call on the government to adopt transparent principles for engagement and interaction with health harming industries
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Equip themselves to challenge common industry arguments that undermine public health
Ian Gilmore, chair of the Alcohol Health Alliance, said, “Alcohol, tobacco and unhealthy food are the three biggest killers in our society, with alcohol alone claiming 10,000 lives in 2022—the worst on record. Our national health and frontline services are at breaking point as a result.
“For too long, previous governments have worked hand in glove with these industries, leading to policies that prioritise private profits over public health. All the while people have paid the price with their lives.
He added, “MPs are expected to make decisions based on the best interests of their constituents, but we know that lobbying tactics such as receiving gifts and benefits from these industries can lead to a conflict of interest and impartiality being compromised.”
Protecting health policy from industry influence is strongly supported by the British public. A YouGov poll carried for ASH of over 13,000 adults revealed that most people support protecting government health policies from the influence of the tobacco industry (78 per cent), the alcohol industry (71 per cent), and the manufacturers of unhealthy food and drinks (71 per cent).
One strategy outlined in the report is using gifts, benefits, and hospitality to gain access to MPs and their staff and cultivate allies. MPs and members of the House of Lords are permitted to accept such gifts under the ‘Code of Conduct’ provided they declare any gifts exceeding £300 in value.
While the UK’s commitments under the World Health Organisation’s Tobacco Control Treaty impose strict rules on government engagement with the tobacco industry, similar regulations are lacking for the alcohol and junk food industries.
The authors said that this gap in regulation is a cause for concern, particularly as public support for government action in this area is strong. The health organisations have said the government must listen and take decisive action to protect public health policy from undue industry influence.
Source: Dental Nursing, 5 September 2024
See also: ASH - Killer Tactics
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Starmer’s ‘nanny state’ may tax sugar and salt
Sugar and salt taxes are being discussed at the Treasury, with officials recently meeting campaigners who are pushing for new levies.
Health charities are urging the Government to bring in taxes on foods high in fats, salt and sugar.
They are also calling for extra taxes to cap the profits of tobacco manufacturers.
On Friday a report by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) calls for a levy on salt and sugar, expanded bans on junk food promotion and extra taxes on tobacco manufacturers.
In recent weeks the Obesity Health Alliance – a coalition of 60 health charities and royal colleges – met the Treasury’s health team to discuss a levy on salt and sugar in foods.
Under the Government’s new system of cross-departmental missions, the Treasury has been asked to consider fiscal changes which could improve the health of the nation.
The BHF report suggests the extra charges placed on manufacturers could raise £3 billion a year.
This should be used to fund programmes which encourage people to eat more healthily, such as vouchers for fruit and vegetables, the charity says.
This levy would follow the introduction of the sugar tax on soft drinks in 2018, which pushed manufacturers to reduce the sugar content and nearly halved children’s added sugar intake.
Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, has previously suggested that he is prepared to use “the heavy hand of state regulation” to force food companies to make their products healthier.
In May 2023 he described the sugar tax placed on soft drinks in 2018 as “without doubt one of the most effective public policy interventions on public health under the Conservatives”.
The BHF is calling for levies on sugary and salty foods to be part of a heart disease action plan which would also see reductions in waiting times for treatment and an expansion in research.
It also proposes “polluter pays” charges on tobacco manufacturers which cap profits at 10 per cent.
Official figures show more than 39,000 people in England died before turning 75 from cardiovascular conditions, the highest total since 2008.
Forecasts from the BHF say this figure will reach 44,000 by 2035 if current trends continue.
The charity says 11,000 lives could be saved if the Government introduced “radical” measures.
A spokesman from the Department of Health and Social Care said: “Cardiovascular disease is one of this country’s biggest killers, and this Government has already taken action to tackle it, recognising that prevention is better than cure. As part of this, we have already recently introduced health checks in workplaces.
“We will also introduce the Tobacco and Vapes Bill which will take action to tackle the harms of smoking.”
Source: The Telegraph, 6 September 2024
See also: BHF – Hearts Need More: a call for a Heart Disease Action Plan | BHF - Reducing the UK’s salt intake: potential benefits
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Opinion: Keir Starmer’s big idea: the preventative state
Writing for the New Statesman, senior political editor George Eaton, discusses Keir Starmer's proactive approach to public health, emphasising prevention over cure as a central aspect of his philosophy. Eaton argues Starmer views preventable deaths, particularly those from smoking, as a critical area for government intervention to reduce the burden on the NHS and taxpayers. Eaton believes this strategy is part of Starmer’s wider political philosophy, articulated in a Fabian Society 2016 essay, arguing that public services should focus on prevention rather than merely addressing crises.
Eaton believes Starmer and Health Secretary Wes Streeting are shifting health policy towards prevention, as exhibited by their proposed ban on outdoor smoking, their moves to restrict junk food and vape promotion to children, and free health checks for middle-aged workers.
Eaton emphasises that Starmer’s broader vision is of a "preventative state" rather than a "nanny state," calling for investments in social care, mental health, and children’s services to address root causes of societal issues. Eaton insists the Labour manifesto reflects this approach by proposing local prevention partnerships to identify at-risk youth and intervene early.
Eaton argues the challenge for Starmer’s Labour is to demonstrate that the state can both prevent harm and enable joy. Eaton maintains that to mitigate the political risk of Labour policies being branded joyless, Labour should balance restrictive policies with initiatives that enhance public enjoyment and quality of life.
Source: The New Statesman, 2 September 2024
See also: The Fabian Society – Future-Oriented Public Services
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U.S. High School Vaping Hits 10-Year Low After Crackdown, CDC Says
Fewer than 8% of high school students (1.2 million) reported using e-cigarettes in the last month, down from 10% in 2023 and the lowest level in a decade, according to a survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration.
By comparison, about 35% of middle and high school students (9.4 million) reported using e-cigarettes in 2019, the highest rate ever recorded among U.S. students, according to the CDC.
E-cigarette use among middle and high school students dropped to 1.63 million in 2024 from 2.13 million last year, a decline of roughly 23%, the survey said.
About 20.6% fewer middle and high school students reported using the most popular brand, Elf Bar, according to the survey, after the FDA sent warning letters to distributors to prohibit the sale of Elf Bar products to teens earlier this year.
The FDA has also prohibited Reynolds American—which sells Newport and Camel cigarettes, among others—from selling some menthol-flavoured and mixed-berry flavoured products.
Some school districts have installed vaping detectors in school bathrooms following an increase in youth vaping in recent years. The Montgomery County Public Schools system in Maryland announced earlier this year they would crack down on vaping by spending $2 million in funds the system received in a settlement with e-cigarette maker Juul.
Source: Forbes, 5 September 2024
See also: CDC - Youth E-Cigarette Use Drops to Lowest Level in a Decade | Notes from the Field: E-Cigarette and Nicotine Pouch Use Among Middle and High School Students — United States, 2024
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Backbench debate on Preventable Baby Loss
MPs today met in the House of Commons to debate preventable baby loss. The debate, put forward by Lee Anderson MP for Ashfield, highlighted the role of risk factors including smoking, obesity and diabetes in causing the preventable deaths of newborn babies. Conservative MP for Sleaford and North Hykeham, Dr Caroline Johnson, put forward that there should be greater systemic focus, starting from pre-conception, on risk factors that can cause baby death. This includes smoking and obesity.
Source: The House of Commons, 4 September 2024
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Podcast: Alcohol Alert
The Alcohol Alert podcast, produced by the Institute of Alcohol Studies, speaks to Alfie Slade, Government Affairs Lead at the Obesity Health Alliance (OHA), about the Killer Tactics joint report. The report was developed by the OHA alongside the Alcohol Health Alliance and Action on Smoking and Health. Alfie Slade discusses how tobacco alcohol, and unhealthy food and drink industries hold back public health progress.
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Recruitment: All Together Smokefree Programme
Champs Public Health Collaborative has three exciting opportunities for passionate, dynamic people to work across Cheshire and Merseyside on an innovative, large scale public health programme to transform population health and wellbeing through tackling our single greatest cause of preventable inequalities.
The All Together Smokefree ambition is to end smoking, everywhere, for everyone in Cheshire and Merseyside, delivering a Smokefree 2030 that is fair and equitable for adults and a tobacco free future for every child.
Closing Date: 02/10/2024 at 23:59
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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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