Well done Ireland
Plain packs only for Irish smokers: Ireland follows Australia's example to remove advertising
Health minister James Reilly yesterday announced government plans
More than 5,200 people die in Ireland every year from tobacco-related diseases
By PETRINA VOUSDEN
PUBLISHED: 00:19 GMT, 29 May 2013 | UPDATED: 06:33 GMT, 29 May 2013
45 shares 56 View
comments
(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/05/29/article-2332451-05D9384E0000044D-814_306x491.jpg)
Clampdown: Ireland is to become the second country after Australia to introduce plain pack cigarettes. It is hoped this will stop young smokers, particularly girls, being attracted to smoking. This picture is posed by models
Ireland is to become the second country after Australia to introduce plain pack cigarettes.
Health minister James Reilly yesterday announced government approval for his plan to remove the 'mobile advertisement' for tobacco firms, ahead of World No Tobacco Day on Friday.
Dr Reilly said more than 5,200 people died in Ireland every year from tobacco-related diseases. 'One in two of all smokers will die from their addiction,' he said.
The Irish Cancer Society and the Irish Heart Foundation welcomed the plan, expected to come into force next year.
But the move was criticised by Retailers Against Smuggling, which said it would make it easier for illicit traders to produce black-market cigarettes.
Dr Reilly said the initiative will stop big cigarette companies from using marketing tactics like packet size, colour and style to attract young smokers, particularly girls.
'The introduction of standardised packaging will remove the final way for tobacco companies to promote their deadly product in Ireland.
(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/05/29/article-2332451-1847BCA3000005DC-451_634x491.jpg)
Cigarette packets will no longer be a mobile advertisement for the tobacco industry,' Dr Reilly said.
There are currently about one million smokers in Ireland.
The plain packaging plan to combat smoking levels was unanimously agreed by Cabinet, yesterday and is being enacted to make tobacco products look less attractive and make health warnings more prominent.
Minister Reilly said as they prepare the legislation there is awareness that the 'tobacco industry' will attempt to use every device at its disposal to try to defeat the plan.
More...
Briton scoops £81million EuroMillions jackpot to become sixth richest on National Lottery rich list
Australia was the first country to introduce plain packaging.
Minister Reilly said the Australian Government has 'already beaten' off every single attempt the tobacco industry made in the courts to defeat plain packaging.
He said the industry is now appealing the health initiative to the World Trade Organisation.
The plan was broadly welcomed by health groups yesterday but retailers and tobacco giants claimed plain packaging plays into the hands of criminal gangs and tobacco smugglers.
Health minister James Reilly, pictured, yesterday announced government approval for his plan to remove the 'mobile advertisement' for tobacco firms
Minister Reilly said: 'Smoking places an enormous burden of illness and mortality on our society, with over 5,200 people dying every year from tobacco-related diseases.
'To replace the smokers who quit, the tobacco industry needs to recruit 50 new smokers in Ireland every day just to maintain smoking rates at their current level.
The National Federation of Retail Newsagents Ireland President Joe Sweeney claimed the only people who will benefit from the Minister's announcement will be smugglers and criminals.
Mr Sweeney said: 'I support the government in its efforts to curtail the use of tobacco and alcohol. In doing this though, it must seek to find a balance between regulating harmful but legal, taxed behaviour and driving consumers into the black market to buy illicit products from criminals and subversives whose activities pose an even greater threat to society.'
He added: 'The Minister for Health is sticking his head in the sand on policies towards the tobacco black market in Ireland which are putting retailers out of business.
'At a time when at least one in four cigarettes smoked in Ireland is illegal, the Minister's failure to address the growing criminal fuelled trade in tobacco products shows a breath-taking lack of joined-up thinking.'
Tobacco giant John Player said plain packaging on tobacco merely cuts the supply chain costs for criminals and will have no impact on smoking rates.
'This decision plays into the hands of the criminal gangs who profit from counterfeit tobacco; their job will be significantly easier now that all tobacco products are intended to be sold in the same generic packaging' John Player managing director Andrew Meagher said.
He added: 'Ireland is known as a smugglers' paradise due to our high levels of illicit trade. We expect the situation to worsen considerably as a result of this move, placing further pressures on retailers and government tax revenues."
He said the 2004 smoking ban, the ban on sale of packets of ten cigarettes in 2007 and the 2009 ban on display of cigarettes have not had any impact on smoking levels.
Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, Faculty of Public Health Medicine spokesman Dr Fenton Howell said: 'Plain packaging will stop the tobacco industry from using the pack as a marketing tool to mislead another generation of young people into thinking that smoking is cool and fashionable, when in reality cigarettes makes addicts of our children and condemns them to a life of unnecessary illness and death 10-15 years ahead of time.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2332451/Plain-packs-Irish-smokers-Ireland-follows-Australias-example-remove-advertising.html#ixzz2Uihd4atY (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2332451/Plain-packs-Irish-smokers-Ireland-follows-Australias-example-remove-advertising.html#ixzz2Uihd4atY)
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook