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A plan to put red health warnings on individual cigarettes will be unveiled in Parliament today (14 June 2021). It would also see tobacco manufacturers who fail to comply facing jail or huge fines.
Tory Lord George Young is to introduce a private members bill that could see the move become part of existing cigarette laws. Warnings would range from “Smoking kills” to “You don’t need me anymore.”
Lord Young said: “This is cost-free, popular and more effective than health warnings on packets. The Government could respond positively, and I would be delighted if it did.” Lord Young first proposed the measure as a health minister under Margaret Thatcher, but the tobacco industry successfully resisted on the grounds the ink would be carcinogenic.
Deborah Arnott of Action on Smoking and Health said: “Cigarettes kill smokers, not cigarette packs, so obviously they are where health warnings are most needed. All it needs is Government support for us to become the first country to put ‘smoking kills’ on the cigarette itself.”
The UK has nearly seven million smokers – mainly aged 25 to 34 and among manual workers. It kills 77,600 people a year and causes 500,000 hospital admissions.
Source: Mirror, 13 June 2021
See also: ASH Press Release – Bill to put health warnings on cigarette sticks being put to Parliament on Monday 14th June
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Fire crews across Dorset are urging smokers to quit. Dorset & Wiltshire Fire Rescue Service (DWFRS) has highlighted Cigarettes and related materials to smoking as the “top factor” in fatal fires for years.
As a result, people who smoke are being urged to quit or encourage friends and family who smoke to stop.
A spokesman from DWFRS said: “Smoking-related materials have been the top factor in fatal fires for many years. The best way to prevent such fires is to stop smoking. If you’re caring for someone who smokes - start by encouraging them to quit.”
Source: Dorset Echo, 13 June 2021
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A tip-off about money laundering and counterfeit goods led police to recover thousands of illicit cigarettes as well as unaccounted cash in a crackdown in Wirral shops this week.
More than 1,000 packets of cigarettes and tobacco were recovered during the raid at stores across Wirral alongside a large quantity of cash.
A spokesperson for Merseyside Police, posting on social media, said: “Officers from TeamBeb have been working alongside trading standards as part of a joint operation today. Various stores across Wirral have been visited by local enforcement teams and local officers after receiving intelligence of money laundering and counterfeit goods being sold at these locations.
“Officers seized over 1,000 illicit packets of cigarettes and tobacco. Officers also seized a large amount of money which was unaccounted for. It is believed that this money was intended to be used for criminality.”
Source: Liverpool Echo, 11 June 2021
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COVID adviser Professor Linda Bauld said she is “delighted” to have been made an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list after putting in “many, many hours” with public health colleagues during the coronavirus pandemic.
Bauld, who is the Chair of Public Health at the University of Edinburgh, has been a regular on TV and radio in the past 15 months, explaining the course of the pandemic and commenting on the various restrictions put in place by the government. She has also been an adviser to the Scottish Parliament’s COVID-19 Committee while continuing her role as chair of public health at Edinburgh University.
Linda said: “I just got a letter from the office that manages the honours system. I had no idea, and I was delighted. I think everybody working in public health has had to step up during the pandemic and try and figure out how they were going to contribute, what their skills were. I have, for quite some time, engaged with the media and done a lot of science communication, trying to interpret data and communicate it to the public and decision-makers. I think the OBE is for two things, it’s for contributing to the response to address the pandemic and public understanding.”
Bauld also said she hopes the coronavirus pandemic will show universities and other research bodies the value of scientific communication while also helping to improve scientific literacy.
Source: The National, 12 June 2021
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It is now mandatory for tobacco sellers in Uttar Pradesh – India’s most populous state - to apply for a license to sell tobacco. The government has taken this decision to address high smoking rates and to ensure effective enforcement of tobacco control rules.
According to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey conducted by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, 35.5% of adults (15 years and above) in Uttar Pradesh use tobacco in some form or the other. The total direct and indirect cost of disease caused by tobacco use is about 1.8% of India’s GDP.
The new system also prohibits shopkeepers who sell tobacco products from selling non-tobacco products like toffee, candy, chips, biscuits, and soft drinks. This has been done to prevent children from being exposed to tobacco products.
Source: India TV News, 14 June 2021
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