HEADLINES

• Councils prepare to take the reins on public health
• Huddersfield shop worst in West Yorkshire for underage sales of booze and cigs
• British firms attacked for routine use of tax havens
• People unsure whether cancer is preventable
• Smoking is a drag at the box office
• France targets tobacco industry to raise cash for global health

• Councils prepare to take the reins on public health

  The biggest overhaul of public health in 35 years will include the birth of a new quango – Public Health England – and the transfer of directors of public health to local government. The health, social care and localism bills currently going through parliament collectively hand councils the major responsibility for community wellbeing and public health.

  Are local authorities ready? Do they have the necessary expertise? And what barriers stand in their way when it comes to delivering effective local public health strategies? The Guardian investigates.

  Source: The Guardian - 07 October 2011
  Link: http://bit.ly/ohiMXw

• Huddersfield shop worst in West Yorkshire for underage sales of booze and cigs

  A shop shamed as the worst in West Yorkshire for selling alcohol and cigarettes to underage children has had its licence to sell them removed.

  Naseem Sarwar, who owns The Off License in Manchester Road at Longroyd Bridge, had his personal and premises licences suspended for six months by Huddersfield magistrates.

  His brother, Mohammed Afzal, was barred from selling tobacco or cigarette papers for a year.

  They had been responsible for serving booze and cigarettes to test purchasers aged 14 and 16.

  Magistrates heard that the store had failed a previous test purchase in July 2010, this time by a 15-year-old girl.

  The pair, both from Bankfield Road, Longroyd Bridge, were interviewed then and offered a caution.

  Samantha Lawton, prosecuting, said: “Since July 31, 2010 until August 25, 2011, The Off License has been identified as the poorest performing retail premises in the whole of West Yorkshire in regards to underage sales law.

  “From the period of April 1 2010, to present, over 100 test purchases have been carried out.

  “The Off License is the only premises within this period who have sold six products (over three separate dates) to underage children not only in KMC, but in the whole of West Yorkshire.”

  A spokesman for West Yorkshire Trading Standards said: “This is very pleasing result which reflects the extent to which The Off License has been prepared to flout the law.

  “This particular premises has an appalling track record in relation to underage sales and this has clearly been reflected in the sanctions imposed by the court.

  “This is the first time WYTS has made an application to impose a ban on cigarette sales.

  “Hopefully this case will send a stern warning to other retailers who fail to take their responsibilities seriously.”

  Source: The Examiner - 07 October 2011
  Link: http://bit.ly/oY7YAx

• British firms attacked for routine use of tax havens

  Ninety-eight of the FTSE 100 companies use tax havens, including the state-backed Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group, according to a report published today.

  For example, the oil giants BP and Shell have almost 1,000 tax haven companies between them, while British American Tobacco has 200.

  ActionAid, the international development charity, said the use of offshore companies had reached "epidemic levels" and demanded that politicians live up to their rhetoric about closing tax loopholes. They said tax dodging by multinational companies in the world's poorest countries kept them dependent on aid from countries such as Britain.

  The charity, which has analysed information requested by Companies House, found that the 100 largest groups registered on the London Stock Exchange have 34,216 subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates – a quarter of which are located in tax havens.

  The charity admitted its report, Addicted to tax havens: The secret life of the FTSE 100, does not in itself prove tax avoidance. But it argued that the scale of multinationals' operations in countries that provide tax advantages showed the need for greater transparency. It called on the G20 summit in Cannes next month to force companies to break down their accounts on a country-by-country basis.

  Source: The Independent - 11 October 2011
  Link: http://ind.pn/pjW8wL

• People unsure whether cancer is preventable

  People are unsure about whether cancer is a preventable disease, according to new research.

  The study looked at ten common cancers and asked if people thought they were 'largely preventable'. The lack of knowledge could discourage many people to take steps to lead healthier lifestyles.

  The findings revealed that skin cancer was perceived to be the most preventable of the ten cancers surveyed with half of respondents. Lung and mouth cancer were rated the second and third largely preventable cancers, although only 41 per cent and 32 per cent of respondents, identified them as avoidable, despite their clear association with the risks of smoking.

  The research, carried out at the University of Texas stated: Only 5-10 per cent of all cancer cases can be attributed to genetic defects, whereas the remaining 90–95 per cent have their roots in the environment and lifestyle. The lifestyle factors include cigarette smoking, diet (fried foods, red meat), alcohol, sun exposure, environmental pollutants, infections, stress, obesity, and physical inactivity. 

  Source: Female First - 10 October 2011
  Link: http://bit.ly/r24wqf

• Smoking is a drag at the box office

  A new analysis has found that films with scenes that show smoking make less money at the box office than their cigarette-free counterparts. The finding, says Stanton Glantz, director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at the University of California, San Francisco, adds to the case for giving any movie that depicts smoking to an automatic 'R' rating.

  Together with Jonathan Polansky, who helped craft anti-smoking messaging in the past and now heads the California-based media campaign company Onbeyond, Glantz reviewed information on 1,232 movies released in the U.S. that were among the top 10 grossing films for at least one week between 2002 and 2010.

  Movies with bigger budgets tended to earn more at the box-office, as they were more likely to feature big stars and massive promotional marketing. Moreover, PG-13 films had a better chance of making more money than R rated films—in part because the former are accessible to a wider age-range of moviegoers. But even after controlling for factors such as total budget and film rating, the researchers found that smoking was associated with 13 percent less money made in ticket sales.  

  The research, which was funded by the Legacy Foundation, a Washington, DC-based tobacco prevention nonprofit, was published online in Tobacco Control.

  Source: Scientific American - 10 October 2011
  Link: http://bit.ly/q77Im8

• France targets tobacco industry to raise cash for global health

  France is considering introducing an innovative new additional tax on the tobacco industry, in an effort to reduce the number of deaths from tobacco related illnesses. It is estimated that there are 60 000 deaths a year in France from these illnesses.

  The proposed new tax, which would raise money to be used in France and in the developing world, is inspired by Unitaid, the international facility to buy drugs for developing countries. Unitaid’s main source of funding is a levy on airplane tickets.

  [requires subscription] 

  Source: BMJ - 10 October 2011
  Link: http://bit.ly/no5qOh