ASH Daily News for 13/06/2003
HEADLINES
ASH, 102 Clifton Street, LONDON, EC2A 4HW.
Tel 020 7739 5902 Fax 020 7613 0531
ASH Daily News
13 June 2003
HEADLINES
Health Secretary Alan Milburn resigns
John Reid appointed new Health Secretary
BAT defends joint venture with Myanmar ‘thugs’
Philip Morris suffers legal setback
Tobacco spending on ads hits high
Irish Hoteliers demand guidance
It’s a smoke free tome
Letter
FULL TEXT
Health Secretary Alan Milburn resigns
In an unexpected move, Secretary of State for Health Alan Milburn resigned from the government just hours before yesterdays cabinet reshuffle. His decision to bow out of government allows him to spend more time with his family.
John Reid appointed new Health Secretary
John Reid has struggled hard this year to meet what must surely be one of the main criteria for his new job as Health Secretary — giving up smoking.
Dr Reid, whose doctorate was in African economic history rather than medicine, is the first Scotsman to take charge of England’s health service. The pugnacious 56-year-old Glaswegian today begins his fifth Cabinet post and his fourth in under a year.
Dr Reid’s rise can be traced back to a lecture in 1994 from the late Labour leader John Smith, who warned him to give up drink or give up his political ambitions. He conquered his fondness for Scotch and came out strongly for Tony Blair in the leadership campaign that followed Mr Smith’s untimely death, marking him out as an enemy of fellow Scot Gordon Brown.
But the man named Scotland’s champion smoker in 1999 took longer to end his 40-year, 40-a-day habit. Marriage last year to Carine Adler, a glamorous Brazilian film director, has helped to motivate him to manage a virtually smoke-free six months.
Full story:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-2-712107,00.html
Source: The Times, 13 June 2003
BAT defends joint venture with Myanmar ‘thugs’
Tobaccco giant BAT has defended its joint venture with Myanmar's military rulers, denounced today as 'thugs' by US Secretary of State Colin Powell.
As pressure mounted on the government to release detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, a BAT spokeswoman said: 'Although the current situation...is very difficult, we are totally committed to our 500-plus employees and our business.'
The joint venture - Rothmans of Pall Mall Myanmar - is the country's leading tobacco company. It is 60% held by Rothmans Myanmar, a BAT unit, with the balance held by a company controlled by the country's military rulers.
The government of Myanmar - formerly known as Burma - is among the most reviled administrations in Asia . . .
Full article:
http://www.thisislondon.com/news/business/articles/timid64141?source=
Source: Evening Standard, 12 June 2003
Philip Morris suffers legal setback
Cigarette maker Philip Morris has failed in its initial attempt to have a $10.1bn (£6.2bn) ruling against it overturned.
The Illinois Supreme Court on Wednesday said it would not hear Philip Morris' arguments against the ruling, forcing the company to take its case to the Illinois appeals court instead.
Rob Campagnino, an analyst at Prudential Securities, said the appeals court "is generally viewed as being unfavourable to corporate interests."
On Wall Street, shares in Altria, Philip Morris' parent company, fell 3.3% to $42.24 as investors digested the news.
Full article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2985888.stm
Source: BBC News Online, 12 June 2003
Tobacco spending on ads hits high
In spite of advertising restrictions, declining sales and a $206bn settlement owed to US states, cigarette manufacturers spent more money on marketing than ever before in 2001, according to a new report from the Federal Trade Commission.
The six largest tobacco companies spent $11.2bn on advertising and promotions in 2001, up 17 per cent from the $9.6bn total logged in 2000. In 1998, the year in which the industry agreed to settle health-related lawsuits brought by 46 states and eliminate some types of promotions, it spent $8.2bn.
The cigarette makers cut back in some areas, reducing newspaper, magazine, outdoor and point-of-sale ad spending to $497m and dropping discount coupon budgets to $602m. But retail value-added marketing - including deals such as "buy one pack, get one free" or "buy three packs, get a free t-shirt" - jumped 38 per cent to $4.8bn.
Full article:
http://search.ft.com/search/article.html?id=030613000719
Source: Financial Times, 13 June 2003
Irish Hoteliers demand guidance
Hoteliers have called on the Minister of Health Micheal Martin to clarify how they are to enforce a smoking ban when the legislation comes into force in January.
The 850 members of the Irish Hotels Federation are demanding the full protection of the law to enable them implement the ban.
Source: Irish Independent, 9 June 2003
It’s a smoke free tome
The latest victim in the crackdown on tobacco sponsorship in sport is the Rothmans Football Yearbook. Publishers of the game’s most popular reference tool have been forced to end a 30 year arrangement with the cigarette manufacturers by changes in the law. The tome will now be known as the Sky Sports Football Yearbook.
Source: Evening Standard, 12 June 2003
Letter
More on the proposed ‘health contract’ that wants smokers to cut down or quit and overweight people to diet when seeking NHS treatment. This letter in The Times comes from Colin Crosby – Medical Director of the Department of Sport and Exercise Medicine at The Garden Hospital.
Full text of letter:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-44-712245,00.html
Source: The Times, 13 June 2003
----------------------------------
Unsubscribe:
Public subscribers: http://www.ash.org.uk/?unsubscribe
Globalink members: http://member.globalink.org
----------------------------------
Tel 020 7739 5902 Fax 020 7613 0531
ASH Daily News
13 June 2003
HEADLINES
Health Secretary Alan Milburn resigns
John Reid appointed new Health Secretary
BAT defends joint venture with Myanmar ‘thugs’
Philip Morris suffers legal setback
Tobacco spending on ads hits high
Irish Hoteliers demand guidance
It’s a smoke free tome
Letter
FULL TEXT
Health Secretary Alan Milburn resigns
In an unexpected move, Secretary of State for Health Alan Milburn resigned from the government just hours before yesterdays cabinet reshuffle. His decision to bow out of government allows him to spend more time with his family.
John Reid appointed new Health Secretary
John Reid has struggled hard this year to meet what must surely be one of the main criteria for his new job as Health Secretary — giving up smoking.
Dr Reid, whose doctorate was in African economic history rather than medicine, is the first Scotsman to take charge of England’s health service. The pugnacious 56-year-old Glaswegian today begins his fifth Cabinet post and his fourth in under a year.
Dr Reid’s rise can be traced back to a lecture in 1994 from the late Labour leader John Smith, who warned him to give up drink or give up his political ambitions. He conquered his fondness for Scotch and came out strongly for Tony Blair in the leadership campaign that followed Mr Smith’s untimely death, marking him out as an enemy of fellow Scot Gordon Brown.
But the man named Scotland’s champion smoker in 1999 took longer to end his 40-year, 40-a-day habit. Marriage last year to Carine Adler, a glamorous Brazilian film director, has helped to motivate him to manage a virtually smoke-free six months.
Full story:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-2-712107,00.html
Source: The Times, 13 June 2003
BAT defends joint venture with Myanmar ‘thugs’
Tobaccco giant BAT has defended its joint venture with Myanmar's military rulers, denounced today as 'thugs' by US Secretary of State Colin Powell.
As pressure mounted on the government to release detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, a BAT spokeswoman said: 'Although the current situation...is very difficult, we are totally committed to our 500-plus employees and our business.'
The joint venture - Rothmans of Pall Mall Myanmar - is the country's leading tobacco company. It is 60% held by Rothmans Myanmar, a BAT unit, with the balance held by a company controlled by the country's military rulers.
The government of Myanmar - formerly known as Burma - is among the most reviled administrations in Asia . . .
Full article:
http://www.thisislondon.com/news/business/articles/timid64141?source=
Source: Evening Standard, 12 June 2003
Philip Morris suffers legal setback
Cigarette maker Philip Morris has failed in its initial attempt to have a $10.1bn (£6.2bn) ruling against it overturned.
The Illinois Supreme Court on Wednesday said it would not hear Philip Morris' arguments against the ruling, forcing the company to take its case to the Illinois appeals court instead.
Rob Campagnino, an analyst at Prudential Securities, said the appeals court "is generally viewed as being unfavourable to corporate interests."
On Wall Street, shares in Altria, Philip Morris' parent company, fell 3.3% to $42.24 as investors digested the news.
Full article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2985888.stm
Source: BBC News Online, 12 June 2003
Tobacco spending on ads hits high
In spite of advertising restrictions, declining sales and a $206bn settlement owed to US states, cigarette manufacturers spent more money on marketing than ever before in 2001, according to a new report from the Federal Trade Commission.
The six largest tobacco companies spent $11.2bn on advertising and promotions in 2001, up 17 per cent from the $9.6bn total logged in 2000. In 1998, the year in which the industry agreed to settle health-related lawsuits brought by 46 states and eliminate some types of promotions, it spent $8.2bn.
The cigarette makers cut back in some areas, reducing newspaper, magazine, outdoor and point-of-sale ad spending to $497m and dropping discount coupon budgets to $602m. But retail value-added marketing - including deals such as "buy one pack, get one free" or "buy three packs, get a free t-shirt" - jumped 38 per cent to $4.8bn.
Full article:
http://search.ft.com/search/article.html?id=030613000719
Source: Financial Times, 13 June 2003
Irish Hoteliers demand guidance
Hoteliers have called on the Minister of Health Micheal Martin to clarify how they are to enforce a smoking ban when the legislation comes into force in January.
The 850 members of the Irish Hotels Federation are demanding the full protection of the law to enable them implement the ban.
Source: Irish Independent, 9 June 2003
It’s a smoke free tome
The latest victim in the crackdown on tobacco sponsorship in sport is the Rothmans Football Yearbook. Publishers of the game’s most popular reference tool have been forced to end a 30 year arrangement with the cigarette manufacturers by changes in the law. The tome will now be known as the Sky Sports Football Yearbook.
Source: Evening Standard, 12 June 2003
Letter
More on the proposed ‘health contract’ that wants smokers to cut down or quit and overweight people to diet when seeking NHS treatment. This letter in The Times comes from Colin Crosby – Medical Director of the Department of Sport and Exercise Medicine at The Garden Hospital.
Full text of letter:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-44-712245,00.html
Source: The Times, 13 June 2003
----------------------------------
Unsubscribe:
Public subscribers: http://www.ash.org.uk/?unsubscribe
Globalink members: http://member.globalink.org
----------------------------------
