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UK plans for ‘sunsetting’ EU laws post-Brexit ‘not fit for purpose’
The plans for discarding EU-derived laws following Brexit have been called “not fit for purpose” by the government’s own independent assessor.
Under new legislation that was the brainchild of the former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg, thousands of laws copied from the EU to Britain’s statute book will be “sunsetted” by the end of next year if they are not each signed off by ministers to be kept.
These include legislation on workers’ rights, such as maximum working time directives and maternity pay, and habitat protections that save endangered animals from development threats.
The retained EU law bill (REUL), which threatens up to 4,000 pieces of legislation, has previously been described as “reckless” by legal experts who say it is badly designed and gives unprecedented powers to ministers to personally decide which laws should stay and which should go.
Source: The Guardian, 22 November 2022
Editorial note: The retained EU law bill could have a significant impact on tobacco control as EU-derived legislation includes regulation of e-cigarettes and cigarette health warnings.
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Middlesbrough store forced to close after illicit tobacco seizure
A store in Middlesbrough has been shut down by the local Trading Standards team after being caught selling illegal tobacco products.
The store will be closed for at least three months following the seizure of more than 6,600 cigarettes and 4.5kg of hand rolling tobacco from the premises and linked vehicles in September 2022.
Middlesbrough Council Trading Standards officers found and seized a further 36 packets of illicit cigarettes and 250g of hand rolling tobacco when they visited the shop on 11 November to give notice of intention to apply for a closure order.
Judith Hedgley, Middlesbrough Council’s head of public protection, said: “Illicit tobacco is harmful to our local communities as it reduces the impact of health improvement measures designed to reduce the prevalence of smoking and reduce health inequalities, and it brings crime into neighbourhoods.”
Source: Convenience Store, 21 November 2022
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Screening every former and current smoker over 50 for lung cancer could quadruple survival rates, study shows
Researchers from the Mount Sinai hospital found patients given a yearly CT scan had a 20-year survival rate of 80 per cent.
For comparison, most lung cancer patients die within one year of diagnosis and barely a fifth survive five years because symptoms of lung cancer often do not show until the cancer is advanced.
In the UK, a targeted lung cancer screening program is planned, which will see all former and current smokers between age 55 and 74 invited for an assessment. High-risk patients will be offered CT scans of their lungs.
Dr Claudia Henschke, study lead author and director of the ELCAP at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, said: ‘While screening doesn’t prevent cancers from occurring, it is an important tool in identifying lung cancers in their early stage when they can be surgically removed. Ultimately, anyone interested in being screened needs to know that if they are unfortunate enough to develop lung cancer, it can be cured if found early.'
Source: The Daily Mail, 22 November 2022
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Alex Cunningham MP, calls for new tobacco control plan in response to Autumn statement
On the 21st of November, MPs debated the Government’s Autumn Statement. Alex Cunningham, Labour MP for Stockton North, Shadow Justice Minister and Vice-Chair of the APPG on Smoking and Health:
• Criticised the “lack of action to address health inequalities” in the Autumn Statement
• Highlighted the need for new health infrastructure such as new hospitals to overcome major gaps in life expectancy
• Asked why the Government has not put a levy on tobacco companies’ profits to fund a desperately needed tobacco control plan
Source: Hansard, 21 November 2022
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