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BMJ Rapid Response: The Javed Khan review - time to make smoking obsolete
Several leading figures in UK health policy have written an open letter to the Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Secretary of State for Health & Social Care published in The British Medical Journal (BMJ), responding to the Khan Review.
The letter signatories include Prof Nick Hopkinson, Chair of ASH, Prof Dame Helen Stokes-Lampard, Chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, Jim McManus, President of the ADPH, Dr Jennifer Dixon, Chief Executive of the Health Foundation and 13 other Presidents, Chief Executives, Chairs and Directors of leading health bodies, charities, medical royal colleges and academic research groups.
They write that they “agree with the Secretary of State for Health, that it is a “moral outrage” that England’s richest people live on average up to a decade longer than the poorest. It is time for the government to match words with deeds, outrage with action.”
The letter follows that “ministers have recognised the need to ‘floor it’ on public health, but to do this there needs to be fuel in the tank.” Citing cuts in the Tobacco Control budget (“by a third in real terms since 2015”) the respondents urged the Government to heed to the review’s underlining call for “immediate investment of £125 million in tobacco control to deliver its Smokefree 2030 ambition.”
Affirming wide public support, a “substantial majority”, for the review’s urgent recommendations, they wrote “No time is to be lost, if current trends continue we will miss the target by 7 years, and around double that for the poorest communities.”
Source: BMJ Rapid Response, 9 June 2022
See also:
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Michael Gove backs annual rise in smoking age
Michael Gove, levelling up secretary, has reportedly opened a cabinet split by signalling support for raising the age of sale for cigarettes. Gove told Times Radio that he was “open-minded” about preventing everyone below a certain age from ever buying cigarettes.
The Making Smoking Obsolete independent review led by Javed Khan which recommended the move has been met with mixed reactions in government. PM Boris Johnson is likely to oppose the measures, and health secretary Sajid Javid, who commissioned the review, is said to be “not minded towards further restrictions on age of sale”.
Gove told Times Radio “We do need to take steps to improve public health […] I do think that enlightened public health measures which are backed by strong scientific evidence, which follow the lead of the doctors, the clinicians — we should look seriously at them.”
Source: The Times, 9 June 2022
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Dishonest to say smoking debate is about health versus freedom, says Whitty
Attempts by tobacco industry lobbyists to make any debate around smoking legislation about health versus freedom are “dishonest”, England’s Chief Medical Officer, Prof Chris Whitty has said, calling it “the most dishonest debate you can possibly imagine.”
Whitty said most people who smoke want to quit but cannot because the cigarette industry has “addicted them at a very young age“ Pointing further to instances of secondary exposure he continued that “smoking causes people who are around a smoker rapid ill health. They’re not choosing to smoke, but they still get the harms of it. That is not freedom of choice.”
He told attendees at a briefing following the Khan Review launch that it is the “most vulnerable in society”, such as those with mental health problems, the unemployed, those in difficult financial circumstances who are “the people the cigarette industry makes its profits out of [...] Anybody who travels around the country as I do sees that the cigarette industry is by far at its most active wherever people are at their poorest, their most vulnerable.”
He praised Dr Javed Khan’s review into how England can become smoke-free for being “bold” in its recommendations. “If you’re in favour of freedom, you absolutely are not in favour of this addictive industry that kills so many people.”
Source: Independent, 9 June 2022
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Dr Richard Holliday, senior lecturer and honorary consultant in restorative dentistry, and Professor Elaine McColl, professor of health service research, Newcastle University, wrote to the Times in response to the article entitled “Elf bars and me: I’m a vaping addict, so will I get gum disease?” after its comments erroneously suggest that the use of e-cigarettes (and specifically nicotine) leads to gum disease, a statement “not supported by the scientific evidence.”
They wrote: “Tobacco smoking is a major cause of oral diseases, including periodontal (gum) disease. Smoke and not nicotine is responsible for these harms, although this often gets confused. Indeed, oral nicotine, such as gum, has been used without concern for decades. Nicotine use does not lead to gum disease. In the case of bleeding gums, it is normal for smokers to get this when they quit; if this happens, those affected should see their dental team for a full examination.”
They conclude saying that “ smokers who are thinking about switching to an e-cigarette should bear in mind that this is a great move for their general and oral health.”
Source: The Times Letters, 9 June 2022
See also: The Times Article
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BBC 'repeatedly failed' to declare IEA's right-wing affiliations, ECU finds
The BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit (ECU) reviewed a six-month period of broadcasts and found that no information about a contributor’s political affiliations was given despite the editorial guidelines in place.
A viewer said that the broadcaster had “repeatedly failed to provide an adequate description of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) when its communications director appeared as a guest”.
The IEA fails to declare its funders, however reports reveal that British American Tobacco regularly donates to the think tank, with a Greenpeace/Guardian investigation revealing that BP is another prominent donor.
The ECU considered that it was “necessary” for some information on the IEA to be given to viewers so that it was not presented as a neutral and unbiased source. However, the BBC had repeatedly failed to do so over the six-month period reviewed.
Source: The National, 9 June 2022
See also: The Guardian - Rightwing UK thinktank 'offered ministerial access' to potential US donors
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Three beaches in Majorca have now introduced a smoking ban. Santa Ponsa, La Romana (Paguera) and Carregador (Palmanova) will no longer allow tourists to smoke on the beach, with fines up to £1,700.
A law was passed in Spain last year that gives local municipalities the power to fine anyone caught smoking on the beach. The law aims to reduce pollution from cigarette butts, and will contribute to Spain’s target to become carbon neutral by 2050.
Source: Business Fast, 9 June 2022
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Making Smoking Obsolete: Independent Review by Javed Khan on Smoking
The long-anticipated report, commissioned by Health Secretary Sajid Javid was published on Thursday, and available to read here. A livestream of the event can also be found here.
ASH’s press release on the Review is also available here.
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Assistant Professor Jamie Hartmann-Boyce and Dr Nicola Lindson discuss the emerging evidence in e-cigarette research and interview Professor Neal Benowitz.
In the episode, Professor Benowitz stresses the importance of comparing e-cigarette use to combustible cigarette use, as the exposure to biomarkers that we can measure is much lower in people who vape than in people who use combustible cigarettes. Professor Benowitz points out that many e-cigarette users have been long-term combustible cigarette users so it is difficult to separate out the effects of each. He highlights the need for longitudinal studies among people who have only used e-cigarettes and have not used combustible cigarettes.
This podcast is a companion to the electronic cigarettes Cochrane living systematic review and shares the evidence from the monthly searches.
Listen to the podcast here.
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