News & Comment
Report: no public desire for more tobacco control measures
Mon 10th October, 2016
Forest has urged prime minister Theresa May to stop her government introducing further policies that would discriminate against the UK’s seven million smokers.
A report – Enough Is Enough: Attitudes to UK Smoking Policies – published on Monday 10th October reveals that a clear majority of the public believe that measures to tackle smoking have gone too far or gone far enough.
Based on a series of polls conducted by Populus for Forest, the report also found that:
The public overwhelmingly believe the government has more pressing priorities than tackling smoking – investing in new doctors and nurses, for example.
There is no appetite for additional tax rises on tobacco products – a huge majority believe that tobacco duty is already about right, too high or far too high.
A significant majority of the public believe that purchasing illegal tobacco is an understandable response from consumers faced with the high cost of tobacco products.
Measures to restrict smoking in outdoor public places such as parks and beaches have no popular or scientific legitimacy and would be hard to police.
Following a dramatic fall in the number of people using NHS stop smoking services a significant majority of the public believe there should be a review of how these services are funded.
A majority of the public believe the government’s tobacco control policies should be independently reviewed and should not be driven by taxpayer-funded lobby groups.
Almost a decade since smoking was banned in pubs and clubs in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and ten years since smoking was prohibited in Scotland’s pubs and bars, a majority of the public believe that pubs and private members’ clubs, including working men’s clubs, should be allowed to provide a well-ventilated designated smoking room to accommodate smokers.
More than half the public also believe that actors should be allowed to smoke on stage and screen when smoking is integral to the plot or characterisation of the play they feature in
Simon Clark, director of Forest, said: “Anti-tobacco campaigners are lobbying the government to introduce new measures they believe are essential to tackling smoking. It is clear however that there is relatively little public support for further anti-smoking policies.
“What is equally clear is the public’s desire for a common sense approach to policy making in the area of tobacco control. Regulation should not be made at the behest of taxpayer-funded lobby groups but on the basis of credible, independent evidence.
“Regulations should be based on fairness not dogma. Punishing rather than educating the consumer is not acceptable. Nor should legislation be introduced without proper consideration of the inevitable unintended consequences.”
He added: “Theresa May says she wants to make Britain a country that works for everyone. She also says the Conservatives will use government to ‘restore fairness’ in Britain. In the coming months, as the government’s new smoking strategy is finalised, ministers should reflect on what that truly means.
“A significant number of adults smoke, and enjoy smoking, and their contribution to society is substantial. Further discrimination against smokers would be the clearest sign that this new one nation Conservative government is not as inclusive as it purports to be.”
Enough Is Enough: Attitudes to UK Smoking Policies is published by Forest on Monday 10th October 2016.
Note:
Enough Is Enough: Attitudes to UK Smoking Policies is based on a series of polls conducted by Populus in 2015 and 2016. Populus interviewed a random sample of 2,113 UK adults online between 1-3 July 2016; 2,111 UK adults online between 29-30 June 2016; 2,089 UK adults online between 24-26 June 2016; 1,011 adults in Scotland online between 11-14 March 2016; and 2,010 GB adults online between 3-4 June 2015.
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2019
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- Implying that smokers are a financial burden to society is "dishonest" and "economically illiterate" says Forest
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- Lift ban on vaping on hospital grounds, says Forest
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2017
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- Plain packs: Forest calls for UK policy review following "five years of failure" in Australia
- Budget 2017: Poor sacrificed on altar of public health, says Forest
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- Health minister should decline WHO award
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March
- Councils urged to review funding of anti-tobacco campaign group
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- Forest slams "pointless" car smoking ban
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February
- Jury still out on plain packaging says Forest
- Campaigners urge Chancellor to "be fair to smokers"
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2015
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- Smoking in cars with children: "education better than big stick"
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- No public desire for plain packaging say campaigners
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February
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January
- Government must resist temptation to over-regulate electronic cigarettes, says Forest
- Government urged to publish plain pack consultation report "promptly" and "without further delay"
- Forest condemns decision to bring forward plain packaging legislation
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- Government launches new anti-smoking campaign
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- Forest slams increase in tobacco duty
- Audiences 'at risk' from on-stage smoking
- No Smoking Day passes with barely a whimper
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- Northern Ireland: smoking could be banned in all private cars
- Health managers accused of discriminating against smokers
- Forest launches 'Nanny Town' video online
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- Increase price of tobacco by five per cent above inflation say campaigners
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February
- Federal judge blocks graphic images on tobacco products
- Rousing start to Forest's anti-plain packaging campaign
- Move to ban smoking in outdoor dining areas, beer gardens, at bus stops and in doorways
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- Workers banned from using e-cigarettes in the office
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- Forest slams study that supports ban on smoking outside pubs and bars
- Forest announces no to plain packs campaign team
- Wales may allow smoking on film and TV sets
- Forest says no to ban on smoking in cars with children
- Imperial loses appeal against tobacco display ban
- New stats claim to show "shocking" cost of smoking in North East
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January
- Forest to petition government against plain packaging
- Hockney hits back at "haters of tobacco"
- Should cigarettes have plain packets?
- Parents invited to pledge to make their cars smoke-free for kids
- Smoker costs landlady £80 fine
- Scotland's smoking ban branded a failure
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- US mayor vetoes smoking ban
- Chicago City Colleges adopts tobacco-free campus policy
- Philip Morris USA launches Citizens for Tobacco Rights
- David Hockney appointed to Order of Merit
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2011
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December
- Revolution in smoking could "eradicate" the cigarette
- Friend of Forest acclaimed for her straight-talking columns
- Children and young people "hoodwinked" by cigarette packaging, says British Heart Foundation
- Welsh assembly government will not ban smoking in cars this term
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November
- Philip Morris fails to pursue Freedom of Information request
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- Australia passes plain packaging laws
- Local authority to introduce no smoking policy at playgrounds
- Cancer centre urges smokers to switch to smoke-free tobacco
- PM 'nervous' about car smoking ban
- 'Smokers' manifesto' tour arrives in Dublin
- Hospital smoking bans creating unintended safety issues for patients
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October
- Doctor suggests tabloids publish daily smoking death toll
- Forest and Save Our Pubs & Clubs featured in BMJ's 'Lobby Watch'
- Smoking ban in Ireland has had no effect on smokers, says chief medical officer
- Call for higher taxes on cigarettes
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September
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August
- TV chef launches e-petition to amend smoking ban
- US tobacco companies sue over graphic warning labels
- US tobacco companies sue over graphic warning labels
- Localism bill will not allow councils to ban smoking in parks and cars, says minister
- Organised criminals target Scots smokers with illegal cigarettes
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- Smoking rate reaches historic low in California
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July
- Forest Eireann: no need to ban smoking in cars
- Protest against town smoking ban proposal
- Forest slams proposal to ban smoking in cars
- MP calls for a change to the smoking ban
- ASH criticised for trying to stifle open debate
- Report documents 'persecution' of smokers
- Imperial criticises DoH report on tobacco
- Call to ban smoking in cars
- MPs host event to change smoking ban
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June
- Sticking an exhaust pipe in your car is safer than smoking says doctor
- Tory MP leads opposition to ban on smoking in cars
- Health minister under fire over ASH links
- Inner city pubs stubbed out by smoking ban
- Register now if you want to change the smoking ban
- Imperial loses appeal against vending machine ban
- ASH awarded WHO medal on 40th "birthday"
- Imperial warns of "nanny state"
- Don't discriminate against smokers, Forest tells NHS
- Imperial Tobacco praised for tobacco consultation response
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May
- Philip Morris sues Uruguay over anti tobacco legislation
- Members of parliament unite to amend smoking ban
- Forest slams ban on smoking in New York parks, beaches and plazas
- Scottish Government wants power to dictate price of tobacco
- Challenge to Scottish cigarette machine ban rejected by Court of Session
- Voices of Freedom to debate smokers' rights
- Ireland: Government must act to stop pub closures
- BBC's guide to rolling your own cigarette attacked as "breathtakingly irresponsible"
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- Hospitals lose bid to make tobacco companies pay for smoking-related illnesses
- China bans smoking in public places
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April
- Hungary: tough new restrictions on public smoking
- Government to cut tobacco guidelines
- USA: e-cigarettes to be regulated as tobacco products
- All US workplaces could be smoke-free by 2020, says CDC
- USA: cigar smokers want right to smoke in public
- Scotland: ban smoking in cars to protect children, says Labour
- Smokers given new shelters at hospital after ignoring blanket ban
- Is smoking still defensible?
- Australian government unveils "world's toughest laws on tobacco promotion"
- UKIP vows to sack MSPs and scrap the smoking ban
- British American Tobacco sets up new business to develop non-tobacco nicotine products
- Shock horror! Prince Harry spotted smoking again
- Sydney apartments stub out smoking
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March
- Amend smoking ban "to help save the Irish pub"
- Scotland: time to rethink smoking ban, says Forest
- Scotland: time to rethink smoking ban, says Forest
- Chancellor criticised for increasing tobacco duty
- Chancellor criticised for increasing tobacco duty
- NHS Trust conducts poll on smoking in hospital grounds
- NHS Trust conducts poll on smoking in hospital grounds
- UK government announces tobacco control plan
- UK government announces tobacco control plan
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February
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