DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
News Release issued by COI News Distribution Service.
Plans were laid
today to remove cigarette displays in shops and prevent underage
access to vending machines, putting children and young people at
the forefront of the next tobacco control strategy.
This will mean removing cigarette displays in shops and
preventing underage access to vending machines, putting children
and young people at the forefront of the next tobacco control strategy.
Over 96,000 responses were received to the Department of
Health's consultation on the future of tobacco control - the
largest ever response to a consultation of this kind.
Responses overwhelmingly supported removing tobacco displays in
shops, and tough action to restrict access to vending machines.
Since the ban on tobacco advertising, retail displays in shops are
the main way in which tobacco products are marketed to children.
These measures will be taken forward in primary legislation
through the Health Bill in the next parliamentary session.
Over eight in ten adults in Great Britain who have ever smoked
regularly say that they started before they were 19. In England
in 2007, nearly 200,000 children aged between 11-15 years of age
were regular smokers. These children are 3 times more likely to
die of cancer due to smoking than someone who starts in their mid-20s.
Health Secretary, Alan Johnson, said:
"Enticing multi-coloured displays encourage young people to
start smoking - we must put a stop to this. Smoking is a habit
which is hard to break and causes 87,000 deaths a year in England alone.
"Protecting children from smoking is our goal. My hope is
that shops will use this opportunity to promote healthier goods to
their customers."
Point of sale displays have already been removed in a number of
countries including Canada. Comprehensive results compiled by the
Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey shows that removing point
of sale display has coincided with a fall in smoking prevalence
rates amongst 15 to 19 year olds - from 29 per cent in 2002 to 19
per cent in 2007.
There is no evidence that stores have had to close as a result of
removing displays in either Iceland or in Canada. Evidence from
Canada suggests the costs of refitting stores could be as low as
£550 per store. The Government will work with trade bodies,
provide support and ample lead-in time for compliance to minimise
any burden on business - regulations will come into force from
October 2011 for larger shops, and for smaller businesses not
until 2013.
Key elements of the consultation included:
Controls on tobacco displays in shops - 95,488 responses (84 per
cent in favour):
* The new powers will remove cigarette displays in shops which
promote smoking to young people, prompt impulse purchases of
cigarettes and undermine smokers' efforts to quit.
* Since tobacco advertising was banned in 2002, retail displays
have been the main source of marketing to young people by tobacco firms.
* Displays encourage unplanned purchases of tobacco, increasing
sales by an estimated 12-28 per cent.
* Where other countries have removed displays smoking prevalence
among young people has fallen by up to 10 per cent.
* Iceland and Canada have not seen shops close as a result of
removing tobacco displays.
* Government will work closely with retailers to develop
regulations setting out detailed requirements. We will aim to
ensure this does not place unnecessary costs or burdens on the
retail industry, and that there is ample lead-in time before any
legislation is commenced to support businesses to prepare,
allowing extra time for smaller businesses.
Preventing easy access from vending machines - 82,722 responses
(90 per cent in favour)
* Powers will be sought to require age restrictions to limit easy
access to young people and to remove machines altogether if they
continue to provide cigarettes to people underage.
* Vending machines, which may appear harmless, are actually the
primary source of cigarettes for nearly 1 in 5 young people aged
11 to 15, compared to 1 in 17 adults.
* Recent test purchase surveys have shown that children were able
to buy cigarettes from machines in over 40 per cent of cases, and
up to 100 per cent in some areas.
Other elements of the consultation were:
Plain packaging. Whilst support was clear for the idea of plain
tobacco packaging to prevent promotion of tobacco products, the
evidence base needs to be developed. The Government has committed
to keep this under review and build on the evidence before taking
further action.
Restrictions on the advertising and promotion of tobacco
accessories, such as cigarette papers. Whilst there was strong
support for such restrictions we need more evidence that this
measure will effect behavioural change before taking action.
Pack sizes - 20s not 10s. Two thirds of respondents to the
consultation were against the proposal. The most common reason
cited against was that it could encourage smokers, particularly
those who are giving up, to smoke more.
Harm reduction - helping those who 'can't quit'.
Around 80 per cent of respondents are in favour of a harm
reduction approach based on medicinal nicotine replacement therapy
(NRT). We will consider this matter further, establishing what
more can be done for our new tobacco control strategy.
Notes to Editors
1. For media enquiries only, please contact the Department of
Health Newsdesk on 020 7210 5221. For all other enquiries, please
contact the customer service centre on 020 7210 4850.
1. The consultation on the future of tobacco control can be
downloaded here: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Consultations/Closedconsultations/DH_085120
2. The summary of responses to the consultation can be downloaded
here: http://www.dh.gov.uk/tobacco.
3. Tobacco displays
Countries that have removed display of tobacco have seen falls in
the number of young people smoking - Iceland has seen a fall of
7.5 per cent among 15-16 year olds, while Canada shows a fall of
10 per cent over five years among 15-19 year olds.
Across the world, an increasing number of governments have either
taken action to prohibit the display of tobacco products, or have
plans to do so, including:
* Iceland (2001), Thailand (2005), British Virgin Islands (2007),
Canada (provinces of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Nunavut, Prince
Edward Island, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Northwest
Territories, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Yukon
Territory), Australia (states of Victoria, New South Wales,
Queensland have consulted on legislation and Tasmania is due to
introduce a ban in 2011).
4. Vending machines
The British Heart Foundation estimates that 46,000 children
purchased their cigarettes from vending machines in 2006.
We have committed to applying age restrictions first, from
October 2011, and assessing whether underage access is still a
problem in 2013. If it is, we will then use the power to ban
vending machine sales. This is to ensure a proportionate response
to the problem and to avoid potentially unnecessary restrictions
on business.
The precise details of age restriction that will be applied will
depend on future consultation and regulations. There are a number
of ways in which access to tobacco from vending machines can be
limited, including:
1) Electronic age verification - tobacco companies provide an
electronic ID card after proof of age has been supplied, to allow
customers to activate tobacco vending machines. This is used in
Germany, the Netherlands, and soon in Japan.
2) ID coin mechanism - customers must obtain tokens from a member
of staff, showing their proof of age. This is used in the Republic
of Ireland and Spain.
3) Infra-red remote control - machines are switched on by
infra-red remote control by member of staff who therefore has to
judge whether the individual is underage. This system is used in
New Zealand.
A number of counties across the world have completely banned
tobacco sales from vending machines. These include Vietnam, China,
Hong Kong, Russia, Singapore, Thailand, Bermuda, two US states.
In Europe, the following countries have banned tobacco sales from
vending machines: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia,
France, Hungry, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland,
Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia.