Press release

For immediate release, 4 December 2000

                      ASH slams BAT cash for ‘Ethics'

Healthcampaigners are outraged at Nottingham University's controversial decision totake sponsorship from British American Tobacco for Britain's firstInternational Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility. The tobacco giant,which is currently under investigation by the Department of Trade and Industryfor its role in ‘aiding and abetting' tobacco smuggling, has promised £3.8mover three years to fund staff and students as they study the social andenvironmental responsibilities of multinational companies.

Chairof Students for Action on Smoking and Health (SASH), Patrick Mackerras, said:“I'm outraged that a university with a strict no-smoking policy could be sonaive. Although, the University's logic may have been bought by BAT's money, Idon't think they have anticipated the pay off of taking tobacco industry money.Students have a choice of where to study and I don't see many people wanting tostudy at a university that is prepared to embarrass itself in public like this.Students and scholars alike have to be asking, What sort of course will it beand what will I learn? Will the curriculum include courses on, ‘How to lie tothe British public for over 40 years' or ‘How to handle having your head officeraided by the Department of Trade and Industry'?”

Mackerras added: “The decisionto take this money from a company that is being investigated by variousgovernments and faces lawsuits by the dozen makes Nottingham University lookvery silly and questions its own ethical judgement.”

KarlBrookes, of the health charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), said:"It's clearly cash for ethics. BAT's products kill hundreds of thousandsof people a year and internationally, it's accused of racketeering and is beingsued by several governments for a vast array of misdemeanours.  I just can't see how this corporatebehaviour makes a university think that this is an acceptable sponsor for a schoolof ethics.”

Contact: Patrick Mackerras, Chair ofSASH: 07989 88 8971 (m) email: alan.mackerras@christ-church.oxford.ac.uk

Karl Brookes, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH): 020 7739 5902, 0589504040 (m)

ISDN For Radio Interviews:020 7729 1047 (please ring 020 7739 5902 first to arrange an interview time)