New plain tobacco packaging campaign launched

The Plain Packs Protect campaign has recently been launched in the north east by health campaigners Fresh, aimed at reducing the number of child smokers who are attracted to glitzy packaging.

According to the group, the average age most smokers in the north east start smoking is 15 years old, but some start at just nine years old.

‘Silent salesman’

Fresh believes eye-catching and increasingly innovative packs of cigarettes can act as ‘silent salesmen’.

Plain Packs Protect is supported by Fresh, Action for Smoking and Health (ASH), Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation.

Smoking is still the north east’s biggest killer, claiming the lives of 11 people a day, according to Fresh.

The government is due to launch a three-month public consultation this spring on whether the UK should adopt the plain, standardised packaging of tobacco products to protect children from tobacco promotion.

Fresh director Ailsa Rutter said: “We want people to support the introduction of plain, standardised packaging for tobacco products as a measure to prevent children and vulnerable young people from taking up smoking, and a lifetime of addiction, through an attraction to these brands.”

Cancer Research UK tobacco control manager Robin Hewings told PN: “Tobacco is uniquely dangerous and requires uniquely firm action, which is why TV advertising of cigarettes has been banned since 1965.

“People generally get addicted to tobacco in their teens and if they carry on smoking it will kill half of them.

“We congratulate the government for their commitment to tackling tobacco and look forward to thousands of Cancer Research UK supporters and researchers making their voices heard.

“We expect the tobacco industry and their front groups to run a massive campaign to fight plain packaging – it is the tobacco policy they now fear most.”

Australia

Australia is the first country to introduce plain drab olive green packaging for tobacco products from December 2012. The plain packs will display only the name of the product brand and graphic health warnings.

Four tobacco giants – Phillip Morris, British American Tobacco Australia, Imperial Tobacco Australia and Japan Tobacco International – are challenging the laws in the High Court.

‘Hands off our packs’

The smoker’s lobby group Forest has recently launched a campaign to petition government against the plain packaging of tobacco.

The group has launched a website, Hands Off Our Packs, that gives opponents of plain packaging of tobacco the opportunity to petition the government when it begins a public consultation on plain packaging in the spring.

New plain tobacco packaging campaign launched