Smoking

[babbymint]

What are people's thoughts on the smoking suggestions?

I'm an ex smoker and I don't have an issue with it being banned, but doing it year on year seems daft, with successive governments potentially changing it at a future date.

Why not just ban it within say 5 years - offer free/subsidised assistance to give up (nicotine supplements etc) and be done with it?

[vowels]

Originally Posted by babbymint

What are people's thoughts on the smoking suggestions?

I'm an ex smoker and I don't have an issue with it being banned, but doing it year on year seems daft, with successive governments potentially changing it at a future date.

Why not just ban it within say 5 years - offer free/subsidised assistance to give up (nicotine supplements etc) and be done with it?

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Too much tax to lose.

[HelenLime]

Originally Posted by vowels

Too much tax to lose.

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As Vowels says.

Also pragmatically it is a highly addictive substance and forcibly making millions of people who have smoked for years stop is unlikely to work. What do you do then if people can’t quit? Force them to go cold turkey? Prosecute them? Better to stop people getting addicted in the first place.
I don’t understand much that this government does but I can sort of see the logic in this one if you want the policy to succeed.

Also the tax.

[missy E]

I cant see it working. Maybe makes it more difficult to buy cigarettes/baccy in shops but wont stop those who will get older people to buy stuff for them.

Why don't they start with vapes as IMHO this has made smoking trendy.
I have friends who have never smoked yet use vapes as a social thing.

ps I hate smoking and the smell of it.

[FlorayG]

Tobacco has too much money and too much clout to be banned. Lots of other, much less dangerous substances (e.g kava kava) have been banned outright because there's no lobby with millions of pounds available to fight it.
I think banning smoking in ALL public places - including outside - would be a better move. The banning of smoking indoors means you can't now enjoy sitting outside a cafe in nice weather eating because of the smokers
Also stop the tax-free imports currently allowed to holidaymakers

[Kcstyle]

I think its a great idea. Image 20 years time when you have to be 35 to buy them. Not much teens are going to persuade someone in their 30s to buy for them... I reckon most teen smokers get their older sibling to buy them by chucking them a couple of extra quid on top of the shop price

40 years time you have to be 55!
80 years time - they can finally be banned (but if there is little profit there will only be afew places you can buy)

Most other countries will see this and follow...

would love to see a vape ban on under 30s - if you are under 30 and want to vape to stop smoking you get it on the nhs. will stop millions of future kids taking up vaping

and as i have said before disposable vapes banned all other vapes only come in a horrible shade of brown so it looks bad on their insta photos. it literally will put some people off starting and stop others.

and ban in beer gardens outdoor coffee areas. why should non smokers have to put up with this?

[tiggertastic]

Originally Posted by Kcstyle

I think its a great idea. Image 20 years time when you have to be 35 to buy them. Not much teens are going to persuade someone in their 30s to buy for them... I reckon most teen smokers get their older sibling to buy them by chucking them a couple of extra quid on top of the shop price

40 years time you have to be 55!
80 years time - they can finally be banned (but if there is little profit there will only be afew places you can buy)

Most other countries will see this and follow...

would love to see a vape ban on under 30s - if you are under 30 and want to vape to stop smoking you get it on the nhs. will stop millions of future kids taking up vaping

and as i have said before disposable vapes banned all other vapes only come in a horrible shade of brown so it looks bad on their insta photos. it literally will put some people off starting and stop others.

and ban in beer gardens outdoor coffee areas. why should non smokers have to put up with this?

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Thing is can you see themniding everyone every time? This is where it will fall over.

30+ to get rid of vapes is a good idea. The smell. Of them 🤢

[Kcstyle]

Originally Posted by tiggertastic

Thing is can you see themniding everyone every time? This is where it will fall over.

30+ to get rid of vapes is a good idea. The smell. Of them 🤢

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the id thing is simple. you dont have id, you cant buy. Im sure if you were a smoker you would get it pretty sharpish when the enforcement date started.

if a shop fails to ID undercover tests they get a one year ban from selling these products.

I know in Scotland you can get an ID card for free (and no doubt we would be the guinea pigs as we always are!)

[Mr Tom Morrow]

A difficult one to manage. Damned if you do something, damned if you don't.

The problem is people will get their cigarettes from others and we may end up with 'middlemen' who buy them for their friends, families or neighbours.

It's a start and they should be commended in my view for trying to do something. The alternative is do nothing and we know a huge number of people are vehemently anti smoking and want to see something done.

[levtweeney]

It is a fantastic idea and the kind of decision making I like. Sensible long term view over short term attack on those addicted. I doubt very much the tax income was thought of in this instance especially as a large chunk of the tax income is then spent on NHS care for smokers.

Edit: ASH did a comprehensive study on the cost smoking has to the country. It shows that the tax intake is dwarfed by the overall costs. Link to article.