East Lancashire parents back the Plain Packs Protect cigarette campaign (From Lancashire Telegraph)
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East Lancashire parents back the Plain Packs Protect cigarette campaign
9:30am Tuesday 17th April 2012 in Health
PARENTS in East Lancashire are supporting a campaign for cigarettes to have plain packaging to make them less appealing to children.
Hundreds of parents in the area have signed up to support the Plain Packs Protect campaign, which aims to introduce standardised cigarette packaging to discourage children from starting smoking.
The results of the campaign will be fed into a national three-month Government consultation, which is due to launch this spring and will determine the amount of support for plain packaging.
Burnley mum Emma Gardener said: “The less attractive they can make cigarette packets look to young people, then so much the better.
"Some of these packs look like they are designed to suggest it’s OK to smoke aged 14.”
An Action on Smoking survey has revealed 80per cent of people would support plain packaging if there was evidence they are less attractive to children.
Janet Walton, tobacco lead for NHS East Lancashire, said: “UK tobacco companies have been increasingly looking to packaging as a way to engage new customers, most of whom start as children under 18.
“In public health terms, this policy change would be a landmark event.
“Removing branded cigarette packaging would be significant in turning off the tap of new young smokers.”
Andrea Crossfield, director of Tobacco Free Futures, which is leading the Plain Packs Protect campaign in the North West, said: “It’s not adults that start smoking, it’s children.
“Smoking is a childhood addiction, with 83per cent of smokers and former smokers in the North West trying smoking before they are 14 years old.”
She urged people to pledge their support for the campaign at www.tobaccofreefutures.org
The UK Government is the first in Europe to commit to a public consultation and is following Australia, which will introduce plain olive green packaging for tobacco products from December.
Comments(16)
gutterpress
says...
11:16am Tue 17 Apr 12
Lifeinthemix
says...
12:04pm Tue 17 Apr 12
have you nothing more creative to pass your time?
this country is full of imbeciles who because they act like the TV, they feel they are happenin man....
Lifeinthemix
says...
12:13pm Tue 17 Apr 12
we don't smoke the packets we want what is inside...duh!
Your ferret stinks
says...
12:32pm Tue 17 Apr 12
lighter fuel etc where does it end?
Meanwhile other shops like 'smokers world' in blackburn has a wonderful and colourful display of drug taking paraphinalia in the front window, yet this is deemed ok is it?
Potty!
BuckoTheMoose
says...
12:44pm Tue 17 Apr 12
""An Action on Smoking survey has revealed 80per cent of people would support plain packaging if there was evidence they are less attractive to children.""
This survey has already been pulled apart. Look at the question - "If there was evidence they are less attractive to children". Well there is no such evidence at all. There is however, plenty of evidence to suggest these proposals would make if far easier to counterfiet cigarettes, something that would make it much easier for young people to get hold of tobacco.
Shops as a rule, tend to follow the law and not serve cigs to underage people. Man in a van observes no such laws, and as his job will be made so much easier by plain packaging, kids will have a lot greater access to tobacco.
The government doesn't care about that though. This is just the next step in thier war on smokers. These pressure groups like Tobacco Free Futures don't care about the facts either. They are funded almost entirely by taxpayers money. They need to keep convincing the government to push the boat even further out, no matter how stupid thier ideas, because the war on smokers guarantees thier wages.
This silliness will have no effect on smoking rates or take up. People start smoking due to peer pressures or friends / family influences. Nobody looks at a fag packet and decides to give smoking a try.
Smoking rates had been dropping year on year before the smoking ban when they levelled off. Maybe smokers are stubbonly refusing to quit because they are sick of being bullied. The governement and pressure groups don't care about the harmful effects of thier actions though, they would happily ban harmless electronic fags to keep the Big Pharma donations and taxpayers money flowing.
And besides. All illegal drugs are sold in plain packaging. It doesn't work for them.....
Lifeinthemix
says...
1:04pm Tue 17 Apr 12
statutes are not law, they are never the law.
if you consent to be governed by a statute you are thus consenting to be governed by the statute as 'IF' the power of law...
the legal eagles have been extracting the urine for a long time, why....?
they makes lots and lots of money everytime the human acts under those statutes.
https://www.lifeinth
emix.info/british-la
w/british-law-green-
card/
anyhow.....back to sleep now.........sssssnnn
nooooOOOOS
BuckoTheMoose
says...
1:28pm Tue 17 Apr 12
Tobacco Free Futures who are running the Plain Packs Protect campaign are funded by NHS Primary Care Trusts.
http://www.tobaccofr
eefutures.org/who-we
-are/
That's taxpayers money to you and me. This means the government are spending our money to lobby itself.
Government lobbying government was supposed to become a thing of the past when the coalition took over, or so we were promised.
Isn't it funny how the Conservatives so easily took hold of the reins of the nanny state after previously promising to put an end to it.
No wonder the NHS is always strapped for cash if they are spending it on lobbying nonsense like this. They say smokers cost the NHS. I would suggest that useless lobby groups like this cost the NHS much more.
It's smokers extra tax money that is funding the war on smokers.
Lifeinthemix
says...
1:40pm Tue 17 Apr 12
BuckoTheMoose wrote:yup spot one moosy...
I forgot to add -
Tobacco Free Futures who are running the Plain Packs Protect campaign are funded by NHS Primary Care Trusts.
http://www.tobaccofr
eefutures.org/who-we
-are/
That's taxpayers money to you and me. This means the government are spending our money to lobby itself.
Government lobbying government was supposed to become a thing of the past when the coalition took over, or so we were promised.
Isn't it funny how the Conservatives so easily took hold of the reins of the nanny state after previously promising to put an end to it.
No wonder the NHS is always strapped for cash if they are spending it on lobbying nonsense like this. They say smokers cost the NHS. I would suggest that useless lobby groups like this cost the NHS much more.
It's smokers extra tax money that is funding the war on smokers.
and the people??? jeremy piles
Izanears
says...
4:44pm Tue 17 Apr 12
Michael@ClitheroeSince58
says...
5:14pm Tue 17 Apr 12
timeforcommonsense
says...
8:33pm Tue 17 Apr 12
Keep Darwen Green
says...
9:18pm Tue 17 Apr 12
Lifeinthemix
says...
9:34pm Tue 17 Apr 12
I think that is it chaps, those who want this are so inept of soul they cannot resist colourful things...
I am living in a nuthouse....
Michael@ClitheroeSince58
says...
9:57pm Tue 17 Apr 12
Lifeinthemix wrote:You do live in a nuthouse don't you?
does heroin come in fancy packets...? OOOO i must start on heroin then being such a sucker for all things bright n shiny....
I think that is it chaps, those who want this are so inept of soul they cannot resist colourful things...
I am living in a nuthouse....
Lifeinthemix
says...
10:59pm Tue 17 Apr 12
halfhearted says...
9:53am Tue 17 Apr 12
Any attempt to educate people is also doomed as the illegal use of drugs has proved.
Piling on tax at the point of sale is also failing,as this only improves the bank balance of criminals.
All these measures are being introduced on the say so of the few.
Leave things be and let people have a choice.