A national anti-smoking strategy: a report on health and smoking (1.63 MB) Item Type Report Authors Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children Rights Department of Health and Children Download date 04/10/2021 03:40:48 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10147/45648 Find this and similar works at - http://www.lenus.ie/hse HOUSES OF THE OIREACHTAS Joint Committee on Health and Children A NATIONAL ANTI-SMOKING STRATEGY A REPORT ON HEALTH AND SMOKING (Rapporteur: Mr Alan Shatter T.D.) November 1999 CONTENTS Foreword by the Chairman, Batt O'Keeffe T.D iii Preface by Alan Shatter T.D. Rapporteur, Joint Oireachtas Health and Children Committee v Chapter 1 Why the Committee considered the issue of smoking 1 Chapter 2 Smoking and Health 5 Chapter 3 Smoking and Addiction 21 Chapter 4 Tobacco Taxes and the Cost to the State of Tobacco Related Illnesses 33 Chapter 5 The Legal Framework 44 Chapter 6 The Manufacture, Sale and Distribution of Cigarettes in Ireland 64 Chapter 7 Health Protection, Promotion, Education and Smoking 70 Chapter 8 A National Anti-Smoking Strategy 80 Appendices 109 i APPENDICES 1. The Tobacco Products (Control of Advertising, Sponsorship and Sales Promotion) Act 1978 2. The Tobacco Products (Control of Advertising, Sponsorship and Sales Promotion) Regulations 1991 and Amendment Regulations of 1994 and 1996. 3. The Tobacco (Health Promotion and Protection) Act 1988 4. The Tobacco (Health Promotion and Protection) Regulations 1995 5. European Council Directive 89/622/EEC on the approximation of the Laws, Regulations and Administrative provisions of the member States concerning the labelling of tobacco products. 6. Directive 90/239/EEC on the approximation of the Laws, Regulations and Administrative provisions of the member States concerning the maximum tar yield of cigarettes. 7. Directive 92/41/EEC on the approximation of the Laws, Regulations and Administrative provisions of the member States concerning the labelling of tobacco products. 8. Directive 98/43/EC on the approximation of the Laws, Regulations and Administrative provisions of the member States relating to the advertising and sponsorship of tobacco products. 9. Correspondence between Rapporteur and the Irish tobacco companies. 10. List of cigarette brands sold in the State. 11. The constituents/ingredients of cigarettes sold in the State. 12. * Activities and events in the State sponsored by tobacco companies since 1986. 13. Western Health Board Guidelines for Children assisting with the enforcement of tobacco product Regulations and parental consent form. 14. Philip Morris Statement of the 14th October 1999. 15. List of those who made presentations to the Committee on Tobacco related issues. 16. Members of the Joint Committee 17. Orders of Reference of the Joint Committee 18. Proceedings of the Joint Committee * See Vol 508 Dail Debates Col 385 - 390 (29th September 1999) ii Foreword by the Chairman, Batt O'Keeffe T.D. The Joint Committee on Health and Children was established in November 1997. As part of its 1998 work programme, the Joint Committee decided to examine the issue of smoking and health. During the period February 1998 to March 1999, the Committee held a series of public meetings and heard evidence from a number of invited groups, organisations and individuals. Written submissions were also received from individuals who did not appear before the Committee. In March 1999, the Joint Committee appointed Alan Shatter T.D. as a Rapporteur to draft a report on the subject for the Committee. The draft report was considered by the Joint Committee at its meeting on 4 November 1999. The report, as amended, was agreed. The Joint Committee is grateful to Deputy Alan Shatter for his work as Rapporteur in researching and drafting this report. The Committee would also like to thank the following individuals and groups for their written and oral presentations. Irish Cancer Society - Mr. Barry Dempsey, Chief Executive - Ms. Joan Kelly, Professional Education Manager Department of Health and Children -Mr. Jerry O'Dwyer, Secretary General -Mr. Chris Fitzgerald - Mr. Martin Higgins -Mr. Tom Power ASH Ireland - Dr. Luke Clancy, Chairman -Ms. Valerie Coghlan, Administrator Ms. Susan Riley, Ms. Ann Moloney and Mr. Peter McDonnell, Solicitor Gallaher (Dublin) Limited -Mr. Adrian Goodrich, Managing Director Gallaher Group PLC - Mr. Ian Birks, Head of Corporate Affairs Department of Education and Science - Mr. Tony Gorman, Assistant Chief Inspector - Mr. Pronsias 6 Dughaill, Inspector -Ms. Ruby Morrow, Senior Psychologist iii PJ Carroll & Co. Ltd - Mr. Alastair Ross, Managing Director -Mr. Patrick Carroll, Company Secretary John Player & Sons Ltd. - Mr. Liam Peters, Managing Director -Mr. Paul Sadler, Group General Manager, External Affairs Mr. Padraig Flynn, EU Commissioner Irish Society of Toxicology - Professor Ryan -Ms. Clare Chambers Irish College of General Practitioner - Dr. Michelle Egan - Dr. Michael Boland Irish Medical Organisation - Dr. Fenton Howell, President-Elect Royal College of Physicians in Ireland - Faculty of Public Health Medicine - Dr. Joseph Barry, Dean of the Faculty Irish Tobacco Manufacturers Advisory Committee -Mr. Flor OMahony, Director World Alcohol and Ash Foundation - Mr. John Hassett - Mr. James Hourihane -Mr. Eamon O'Brien Ward and Fitzpatrick, Solicitors and Hagens Berman, Attorneys at Law Ms. Cora Murray, Environment Health Promotion Officer The Joint Committee requests that the issues raised in this report be the subject of a debate in both Houses of the Oireachtas. Batt O'Keeffe T.D. Chairman °i November 1999 iv PREFACE BY ALAN SHATTER T.D. RAPPORTEUR ON THE ISSUE OF HEALTH AND SMOKING TO JOINT OIREACHTAS HEALTH AND CHILDREN COMMITTEE As Rapporteur to the Joint Oireachtas Health and Children Committee on the important issue of Health and Smoking, I have pleasure in furnishing this Report to the Committee. The Report considers the health consequences of smoking; nicotine addiction; youth and adult smoking; tobacco budgetary and financial issues; the domestic legal framework prescribed by our Tobacco Acts of 1978 and "88 and the Regulations made thereunder; the relevant European Community and European Union Tobacco Directives; background information on the manufacture, importation and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products and the declared promotional expenditure in Ireland of the tobacco industry; the State's approach to anti-smoking health promotion and education and to the enforcement of tobacco controls and prohibitions contained in the Tobacco Acts. Finally, the Report details and proposes the implementation of a National Anti-Smoking Strategy. A substantial amount of work and time has gone into the preparation of this Report over a six month period. In it, I have attempted to distil into a compact readable format information contained in tens of thousands of pages of documentation and research into tobacco, smoking and health and from the submissions received and public hearings held by the Committee. It came as a surprise to me to discover that whilst successive Ministers for Health have over two decades, warned of the serious health consequences of smoking and acknowledged that smoking is a cause of death and disease, up to today, we have no coherent overall strategy to tackle what is presently in this State the biggest health threat of all. Not only is there no single division or unit within the Department of Health and Children which deals exclusively with tobacco/health related issues, a reduction in the number of people who smoke is not stated to be a "key priority" in the Department's own Strategy Statement 1998-2001, although a reduction in those who smoke is an objective of our National Health Strategy. Presently, at governmental and health board levels, action to counter-act smoking is diffuse, piece-meal and unco-ordinated. The detailed proposals contained in Chapter 8 of this Report prescribe a comprehensive multi-faceted National Anti- Smoking Strategy which I hope will receive the support of the Committee and of an overwhelming majority of members of both the Dail and the Seanad across party political lines. As Rapporteur, I am of course solely responsible for the contents of the Report as submitted by me to the Committee. However, I want to acknowledge the help and co-operation I have received in its preparation from John Hamilton, the Clerk to the Committee, Seamus Haughey in the Leinster House Library, my wife Carol who assisted in finding and collating research material; and v Suzanne Mcllvenna, my secretary who typed out various drafts. My thanks also extend to the very many people who responded to correspondence from me seeking essential information. These include Brian Cowen T.D., Minister for Health and Children, Jerry OTDwyer, Secretary General, Department of Health and Children; Pat McLoughlin, C.E.O., Eastern Health Board; T.G. OThvyer, Programme Manager, Southern Health Board; A.W. Halloran, Principal E.H.O. and Paul Hickey Senior E.H.O. Western Health Board; Dr Tony Holohan, Specialist Registrar, Public Health Medicine and Dr. P. Dooley, Director of Public Health, Midland Health Board; Michael McGinley, Programme Manager, Community Care, North Western Health Board, Tony Reilly, Programme Manager, Community Services and Continuing Care, North Eastern Health Board; Bob Collins, Director General, RT.E., Donal Murphy, Director General, Central Statistics Office; Deny Hussey, Chairman, Voluntary Health Insurance Board; Adrian Goodrich, Managing Director Gallaher (Dublin) Limited; Liam Peters, Managing Director, John Player & Sons Limited; Alastair Ross, Managing Director, P.J. Carroll & Company Limited; Margaret Heffernan, Director and Dick Reeves, Director of Food, Dunnes Stores; Senator Feargal Quinn, Managing Director, Superquinn; Dermot Breen, Director of Corporate Affairs, Tesco Ireland; S.A Barry, Chief Executive, Roches Stores, Michael G. Campbell, Director General, RGDATA; Jackie Blake; Regional Personal Manager, Marks and Spencer. I also want to thank the Chairman of the Committee, Batt OKeeffe T.D. and the other members of the Joint Oireachtas Committee for their invaluable support in the preparation of this Report.