Samantha Lewis
A government commissioned report suggests that only 5% of the population should be allowed to smoke in order to reach the smokefree target of 2030 – meaning that anyone born after 2008 will never be allowed to smoke.
The independent report, produced for ministers in England, was carried out after health secretary Sajid Javid asked former Barnardo’s chief executive, Mr Khan, to review the current rules and approaches.
“A smoke-free society should be a social norm – but to achieve this, we must do more to stop people taking up smoking, help those who already smoke and support those who are disproportionately impacted by smoking,” the report says.
The review calls for an extra £125m a year to be invested in smoke-free policies, with a further £70m a year ringfenced for stop-smoking services.
It also suggests to promote vapes as an effective “swap to stop” tool, to help people stop smoking.
The pledge requires that only five per cent of the English population smoke in eight years to reach the target, compared to the roughly 12 per cent who do so now.
If the smoking age is not increased by one year, every year, then the country will miss its smokefree target by years.
Currently, almost 6 million people in England smoke, including one in nine 18 to 24-year-olds, according to the Office for National Statistics, yet tobacco remains the single biggest cause of preventable illness and death.
The proposal on raising the age of sale is reminiscent to what is being introduced in New Zealand, where buying tobacco products will remain banned for anyone born after 2008.
The Khan review: Making smoking obsolete
The “smokefree 2030” target is defined as 5% or less smoking prevalence in the UK.
If the smoking popularity is not reduced from 12% to 5%, then it is likely that the target will be missed by seven years.
In his report, Mr Khan said, “My holistic set of recommendations for government will deliver this, whilst saving lives, saving money and addressing the health disparities associated with smoking.”
The report also found the most disadvantaged communities are disproportionately impacted by tobacco use.
Therefore, Mr Khan recommends raising the age a person can buy cigarettes from 18 to 21, then increasing the age of sale by one every year thereafter.
Proposals put forward
The report, which contains fifteen recommendations, has been proposed to help the government meet its smokefree target.
Another intervention included improving prevention within the NHS, providing smokers with support to quit at every interaction they have with health services, alongside promoting vapes as a ‘swap to stop’ tool.
“We know vapes are not a ‘silver bullet’ nor are they totally risk-free, but the alternative is far worse,” the report states.
Other recommendations include:
- Rethink the look of cigarette sticks and packets to further reduce their appeal
- A mass media campaign to encourage smokers to give up
- Tobacco licences for retailers to limit its availability across the country
- Banning supermarkets from selling tobacco products altogether.
The review says, “If the government cannot fund this themselves, they should make the polluter pay and either introduce a tobacco industry levy or generate additional corporation tax, with immediate effect.”
It also recommends raising the cost of tobacco duties to more than 30%, including raising rates for cheaper products, such as hand-rolled tobacco and banning the sale of cigarettes in duty-free.
Smoking laws in the UK
Before the harm and effects of smoking were known, cigarettes were once viewed as healthy and advertised through mass media, as well as smokers being permitted to smoke inside establishments.
However, since the smoking ban of 2006, there have been significant changes to the smoking laws in the UK.
Smoking was banned in all workplaces, on public and work transport, in pubs, clubs, membership clubs, cafes, restaurants and shopping centres.
That same year saw the minimum age to buy cigarettes in the UK rise from 16 to 18, alongside the government’s announcement that cigarette packets must carry picture warnings, enforced from October 2008.
In 2015, smoking in cars carrying children became illegal, as well as displaying tobacco in small shops.
The following year, a new UK law on standardised packaging gave manufacturers and retailers 12 months to fully comply. This was followed by menthol flavoured tobacco being banned in 2020.
Effects
In economic terms, smoking costs the economy an estimated £19 billion a year, with smoking related health issues alone costing the NHS around £6 billion per year.
“With smoking a major cause of preventable ill health and early death in England and a driver of our stark inequalities in life expectancy, failing to do so would be a major missed opportunity to improve and level up the nation’s health,” the report says.
“Now is the time for bold action.”
Realistic or optimistic?
Currently, there are questions as to whether the ambitious plans will be effective.
Simon Clark, of smokers’ lobby group Forest, criticised the recommendations.
“Creeping prohibition won’t stop young adults smoking,” he said.
“It will simply drive the sale of tobacco underground and consumers will buy cigarettes on the black market where no one pays tax and products are completely unregulated.”
Drastic changes could be made to smoking laws in the UK – currently, they are just recommendations.
Featured image courtesy of haiberliu on Pixabay. No changes were made to this image. Image license can be found here.
Sam Lewis
Samantha Lewis is a journalism graduate with a first class honours. She is currently a freelance journalist based in Leeds