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Government Body Publication
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Police and officers from Bolton Council’s Trading Standards unit raided shops and homes across the borough and seized illegal cigarettes. Police officers, with the help of detective dog Ricco, uncovered 40,000 packets of illicit cigarettes at a shop in Rumworth. A stash had been carefully concealed inside a secret compartment in the shop, with additional items discovered behind a false wall in the cellar.
A simultaneous raid by Salford police and trading standards officers on the house in Little Hulton - which was linked to the Bolton newsagent – discovered more than 60,000 packets of illicit cigarettes. In one visit to a shop in Breightmet, officers found more than 4,500 illegal “laughing gas” canisters with hidden packets of illicit rolling tobacco.
All items have been confiscated, and owners of both shops and the residential property now face criminal proceedings.
Councillor Hilary Fairclough, Bolton council’s executive cabinet member for Environment Regulatory Services, said: “… This won’t be the end of our action against those trading illegally in these goods – and further raids are planned. I want to issue a warning to shops who continue to sell these items: we’ll be paying you a visit soon! And we’ll be bringing our very intelligent four-legged friend who has a fantastic ability to sniff out these items no matter how well you try to hide them! Where appropriate the council will also be reviewing the licenses of premises which are caught engaging in this activity.”
Source: Bolton News, 24 November 2020
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The Republic of Ireland is “on the right track” to be tobacco-free by 2025, according to the Minister of State for Public Health, Wellbeing, and the National Drugs Strategy.
The Public Health Bill (Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products) will ban the sale of tobacco products at places or events that are intended for children in a bid to make Ireland tobacco-free in five years. Tobacco-Free Ireland, the national tobacco control policy, sets the target for the country to be tobacco-free, which is a smoking prevalence rate of less than 5%, by the year 2025.
An action plan was first published in March 2015, and each year the Department of Health reports on the ongoing implementation of the plan. The 2019 Tobacco Free Ireland Annual Report published on Monday found that the key achievements last year included the approved drafting of the bill and the inclusion of a question on smoking in the 2021 census.
The Minister of State for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, Frank Feighan, said “it is possible” to reach the goal of a tobacco-free Ireland by 2025 and that we are “on the right track.” He said: “We are decreasing [the number of smokers] by an average of 1-2% [each year]. It's my hope now that smokers will try to quit as soon as possible.”
Mr Feighan said that the inclusion of a question on smoking status in the 2021 national Census would provide more detailed information on the prevalence of smoking nationwide. He explained: “We want to see where in the country and what age groups [are smoking] more than any other and then we can target our anti-smoking campaigns and our help to those groups.”
Source: News Talk, 24 November 2020
See also: Department of Health - Tobacco Free Ireland 2019 Annual Report
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Cigarette smoking rates in New Zealand have dropped for another year, but more needs to be done if the country is to become smokefree by 2025, according to a tobacco control group.
According to the latest data from the New Zealand Health Survey, daily smoking rates fell from 12.5% in 2018/19 to 11.6% in 2019/2020. The most significant decline was seen among 15-24-year olds as daily smoking rates have almost halved in 10 years with just one in ten now smoking daily. However, 460,000 New Zealanders still smoke cigarettes daily.
Deborah Hart, Director of ASH New Zealand Action for Smokefree 2025, said: “We need a much more dramatic decline in cigarette smoking rates. Helping Māori, Pacific and low socio-economic groups to quit will have the greatest impact in reducing inequality and ensuring we meet the Smokefree 2025 goal.”
She went on to say, “the most practical ways to get close to, or even achieve, the goal is to immediately invest in mass media, support communities with culturally appropriate and scaled-up initiatives and encourage less harmful alternatives, such as vaping.”
Source: TVNZ, 24 November 2020
See also: Ministry of Health – New Zealand Health Survey
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Government Body Publication
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Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has published guidance that it will remain the competent authority for the notification scheme for e-cigarettes and refill containers in Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
However, from 1 January 2021 producers of nicotine-containing electronic cigarettes and refill containers will be required to:
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Submit notifications for Great Britain using the MHRA Submission Portal
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Submit notifications for Northern Ireland using the European Common Entry Gate (EUCEG)
Source: GOV.UK, 24 November 2020
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On Wednesday 16th December 2020, 09:30 to 11:00 am, ASH, Fresh and the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) are hosting a webinar on the immediate changes being made to the regulatory system in relation to tobacco products following the UK’s departure from the EU on December 31st 2020. The agenda will cover:
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Changes to picture warnings on tobacco products (DHSC)
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The Track and Trace system (HMRC)
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E-cigarette notification (MHRA)
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Notification of novel tobacco products (PHE)
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Panel Q&A with all speakers as well as CTSI and Trading Standards North West
The full agenda, including timings and speakers, is available here. You can register for the webinar: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/3444460278494797580
If you have any issues accessing the registration link, please email [email protected]
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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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