Consultation from 25th June - 27th September. Submit your online responses here. To view the North of England Cheap and Illicit Tobacco draft Health Action Plan please click here.
The Government launched it's consultation on the Future of Tobacco Control on 31st May 2008 - click here to access the document.
- Reducing smoking rates and health inequalities caused by smoking
- Protecting children and young people from smoking
- Supporting smokers to quit
- Helping those who cannot quit
The Government is asking for responses around 17 questions - these are:
Annex 1
Questions set out in the consultation paper
Part A: Reducing smoking rates and health inequalities caused by smoking
Question 1: What smoking prevalence rates for all groups (children, pregnant women, routine and manual workers and all adults) could we aspire to reach in England by 2015, 2020, and 2030, and on what basis do you make these suggestions? What else should the Government and public services do to deliver these rates?
Question 2: What more do you think could be done to reduce inequalities caused by tobacco use?
Question 3: Do you think the six-strand strategy should continue to form the basis of the Government’s approach to tobacco control into the future? Are there other areas that you believe should be added?
Question 4: How can collaboration between agencies be enhanced to contribute to the inland enforcement against illicit tobacco?
Question 5: What more can the Government do to increase understanding about the wider risks to our communities from smuggled tobacco products?
Part B: Protecting children and young people from smoking
Question 6: What more do you think the Government could do to:
a. reduce demand for tobacco products among young people?
b. reduce the availability of tobacco products to young people?
Question 7: Do you believe that there should be restrictions on the advertising and promotion of tobacco accessories, such as cigarette papers?
Question 8: Do you believe that there should be further controls on the display of tobacco products in retail environments? If so, what is your preferred option?
We are particularly interested in hearing from small retailers and in receiving information on the potential cost impact of further restrictions on display. What impact would further controls on the display of tobacco have on your business, and what might the cost be of implementing such changes?
Question 9: Do you believe that there should be further controls on the sale of tobacco from vending machines to restrict access by young people? If so, what is your preferred option?
Question 10: Do you believe that plain packaging of tobacco products has merit as an initiative to reduce smoking uptake by young people?
Question 11: Do you believe that increasing the minimum size of cigarette packs has merit as an initiative to reduce smoking uptake by young people?
Question 12: Do you believe that more should be done by the Government to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke within private dwellings or in vehicles used primarily for private purposes? If so, what do you think could be done? Where possible, please provide reference to any relevant information or evidence to accompany your response.
Part C: Supporting smokers to quit
Question 13: What do you believe the Government’s priorities for research into smoking should be?
Question 14: What can be done to provide more effective NHS Stop Smoking Services for:
• smokers who try to quit but do not access NHS support?
• routine and manual workers, young people and pregnant women – all groups that require tailored quitting support in appropriate settings?
Question 15: How can communication and referral be improved between nationally provided quit support (such as the website and helplines) and local services?
Question 16: How else can we support smoking cessation, particularly among high-prevalence or hard-to-reach groups?
Part D: Helping those who cannot quit
Question 17: Do you support a harm reduction approach and if so can you suggest how it should be developed and implemented?
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Further action to reduce smoking rates and health inequalities caused by smoking
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1
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A comprehensive adequately funded tobacco control strategy is needed which is properly monitored, evaluated and regularly updated and which makes appropriate links with international tobacco control measures at EU and WHO level. This should include ambitious new targets to reduce smoking prevalence by 2015 to 15% in the general population and 19% amongst routine and manual workers. By 2020 fewer than one in ten of the population should be smokers, and by 2030 smoking should be almost eliminated with fewer than one in 20 of the population still smoking.
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2
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High tobacco prices due to taxation are the single most effective intervention to prevent smoking. Unfortunately this is undermined by access to cheap, smuggled tobacco, which also exacerbates health inequalities as its use is concentrated among poorer smokers. An improved strategy to tackle smuggling at national, regional and local level is needed to stop the flow of tobacco smuggled by criminal gangs. This must include signing up to a strong WHO FCTC illicit trade protocol and the existing EU anti-smuggling Agreements.
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Protecting children and young people from smoking and secondhand smoke
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3
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Children need protection from tobacco marketing through concerted government effort including taking tobacco out of sight at point of sale, prohibiting tobacco sales from vending machines, removing all brand descriptors and misleading information on tar and nicotine yields, tackling visibility of smoking in the media and sustained social marketing campaigns to prevent uptake and encourage quitting.
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4
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Sustained campaigns are also needed to inform adults of the need to protect children from the harm caused by secondhand smoke and for smokefree air at home and in cars.
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5
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The first step in protecting children is information and guidance but the Government will need to consider legislation for private cars if evidence shows it is necessary and effective.
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Supporting smokers to quit
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6
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Smokers who want to quit need the Government to increase support for NHS stop smoking services, making them more widely available and easy to access particularly for disadvantaged and pregnant smokers. Smokers already suffering the harmful effects of smoking need effective stop smoking services in hospitals. Also needed is free nicotine replacement therapy and other stop smoking medications for all smokers.
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7
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Better training support is needed for stop smoking counsellors and training is needed for all healthcare professionals and community workers in the importance of referring smokers to stop smoking services.
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8
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Sustained social marketing campaigns are needed on how and why to quit, designed to meet the needs of less well off smokers.
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Helping those who cannot quit
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9
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The Government should support the development of pure nicotine products (which like the current medicinal products on the market contain only nicotine and not any other tobacco products) which will be attractive to heavily addicted smokers by relieving their cravings without the harmful effects of smoking.
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10
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These new, more efficient medicinal quality nicotine products need to be promoted as a safer alternative to tobacco and be available wherever tobacco is sold.
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