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Tobacco smuggling is killing more people than illegal drugs
October 10, 2008Analysis: Why combatting smuggling is a priority
Tobacco smuggling causes around 4,000 premature deaths a year-four times the number of deaths caused by the use of all smuggled illegal drugs put together-but the UK government is not doing enough to tackle the problem, claim experts on bmj.com today.
Professor Robert West from the Cancer Research UK Health Behaviour Research Centre and colleagues argue that more smokers would quit if cigarettes cost more, but at around half the price, smuggled tobacco is keeping the prices down.
Around 21% of all tobacco smoked in the UK is smuggled into the country. If there were no smuggling, the price of legal tobacco would increase by around 12%. According to the authors, this would lead to 5-8% of smokers kicking the habit - saving at least 4000 lives a year.
A reduction in tobacco smuggling would also help reduce health inequalities because low income smokers are more likely to use smuggled tobacco and they are also more likely to quit because of price increases.
While the authors acknowledge that tobacco smuggling has reduced considerably since the government 'Tackling Tobacco Smuggling' strategy was announced in 2000, they argue that more needs to be done and call for more action and resources to tackle the problem.
For example, the UK government has not followed the lead of all the other European Union countries and has failed to sign up to legally enforceable agreements with the two tobacco companies, Philip Morris International and Japan Tobacco International, to ensure that they tightly control and regulate distribution and stop supplying contractors involved in smuggling.
The authors point out that because public targets for reducing smuggling into the UK were dropped in March this year, the HM Revenue and Customs can no longer be held publicly accountable for performance in this area. They believe that when the new UK Border Agency take over responsibility for cross-border control later this year, there will be a risk that tobacco smuggling will be sidelined by the main focus of immigration.
They conclude by urging the UK Government to set out comprehensive measures and clear targets for the UK Border Agency to control the illegal tobacco, and for the government to support negotiations, currently underway, for a strong international treaty to tackle smuggling.
BMJ-British Medical Journal
Around 21% of all tobacco smoked in the UK is smuggled into the country. If there were no smuggling, the price of legal tobacco would increase by around 12%. According to the authors, this would lead to 5-8% of smokers kicking the habit - saving at least 4000 lives a year.
A reduction in tobacco smuggling would also help reduce health inequalities because low income smokers are more likely to use smuggled tobacco and they are also more likely to quit because of price increases.
While the authors acknowledge that tobacco smuggling has reduced considerably since the government 'Tackling Tobacco Smuggling' strategy was announced in 2000, they argue that more needs to be done and call for more action and resources to tackle the problem.
For example, the UK government has not followed the lead of all the other European Union countries and has failed to sign up to legally enforceable agreements with the two tobacco companies, Philip Morris International and Japan Tobacco International, to ensure that they tightly control and regulate distribution and stop supplying contractors involved in smuggling.
The authors point out that because public targets for reducing smuggling into the UK were dropped in March this year, the HM Revenue and Customs can no longer be held publicly accountable for performance in this area. They believe that when the new UK Border Agency take over responsibility for cross-border control later this year, there will be a risk that tobacco smuggling will be sidelined by the main focus of immigration.
They conclude by urging the UK Government to set out comprehensive measures and clear targets for the UK Border Agency to control the illegal tobacco, and for the government to support negotiations, currently underway, for a strong international treaty to tackle smuggling.
BMJ-British Medical Journal
Tobacco Current Events and Tobacco News RSSCigarettes Harbor Many Bacteria Harmful to Human Health
Cigarettes are "widely contaminated" with bacteria, including some known to cause disease in people, concludes a new international study conducted by a University of Maryland environmental health researcher and microbial ecologists at the Ecole Centrale de Lyon in France.
Study raises concerns about outdoor second-hand smoke
Indoor smoking bans have forced smokers at bars and restaurants onto outdoor patios, but a new University of Georgia study in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that these outdoor smoking areas might be creating a new health hazard.
New study links vitamin D deficiency to cardiovascular disease and death
While mothers have known that feeding their kids milk builds strong bones, a new study by researchers at the Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City suggests that Vitamin D contributes to a strong and healthy heart as well - and that inadequate levels of the vitamin may significantly increase a person's risk of stroke, heart disease, and death, even among people who've never had heart disease.
Consumption of certain fish during pregnancy associated with poorer cognitive performance
Children who eat fish more than 3 times per week show a worse performance in the general cognitive, executive and perceptual-manipulative areas.
90 percent of Africans are not protected by smoke-free laws
As African nations are poised to undergo the highest increase in the rate of tobacco use among developing countries, nearly 90 percent of people on the continent remain without meaningful protection from secondhand smoke, according to a new report released at a regional cancer conference today.
Scientists call for ban on alcohol-industry sponsorship of sport
The alcohol industry's sponsorship of sport should be banned and replaced with a dedicated alcohol tax modelled on those employed by some countries for tobacco, say scientists.
Common plants can eliminate indoor air pollutants
Air quality in homes, offices, and other indoor spaces is becoming a major health concern, particularly in developed countries where people often spend more than 90% of their time indoors.
Smokers with common autoimmune disorder at higher risk for skin damage
As if there weren't enough reasons to stop smoking, a team of researchers at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) have just found another.
Crushing cigarettes in a virtual reality environment reduces tobacco addiction
Smokers who crushed computer-simulated cigarettes as part of a psychosocial treatment program in a virtual reality environment had significantly reduced nicotine dependence and higher rates of tobacco abstinence than smokers participating in the same program who grasped a computer-simulated ball.
American Cancer Society calls for new strategies to monitor exposure to environmental carcinogens
A new report from an American Cancer Society (ACS) scientific advisory subcommittee on cancer and the environment says exposure to carcinogens should be minimized or eliminated whenever feasible, and calls for new strategies to more effectively and efficiently screen the large number of chemicals to which the public is exposed.
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