Gloucestershire: Health bosses invest in tobacco industry

Millions of pounds of Gloucestershire's money is tied up in tobacco companies to boost pension profits by county councils and health bosses.

Anti-smoking groups reacted with outrage after it was revealed health chiefs and councils have £9 million worth of investments in two major tobacco companies.

NHS Gloucestershire, which runs NHS Stop Smoking, is one of the contributing employers to the county-wide fund which has 40,000 members.

Gloucestershire Local Government Pension Fund has holdings valued at £6.4m in British American Tobacco and £2.4m in Imperial Tobacco Group last financial year.

The pension scheme is open to all local government employees, including Cheltenham Borough Council, and Gloucestershire County Council administers the fund.

It invested £29.4m in the fund and its employees contributed almost £10m. NHS Gloucestershire paid £188,000 into the fund.

Murray Watson, chairman of Breathe Easy in Gloucester and the Cotswolds, which is a patient support group linked to the British Lung Foundation, called for health chiefs to review unethical investments.

He said: "It is ironic. We are trying to keep people out of hospitals and they are investing in companies which profit from smokers. I appreciate they are trying to make money but they should invest in other companies."

The fund is also available to employees of Gloucestershire's six district councils, all parish and town councils, the University of Gloucestershire and other public organisations.

Cheltenham MP Martin Horwood said the councils should "disinvest" from companies whose objectives are diametrically opposed to those of the NHS and Cheltenham Borough Council. He said: "It also strikes me as a pretty poor long-term investment, given the risks associated with the tobacco industry."

A spokesman for NHS Gloucestershire gave no indication it would demand ethical investment from the fund.

She said: "We understand Gloucestershire County Council monitor closely the nature of investments made and seek to achieve best value with the funds available."

Lee Coates, director of the Ethical Investors financial advisers company in Cheltenham, said any member of the pension fund has a right to dictate what the county council does with the money.

He said: "For 26 years there has been no difference in return from ethical and non-ethical funds. All pension funds should have a written statement disclosing the social, ethical and environmental policy."

Councillor Ray Theodoulou, (Cons, East Cotswolds) chairman of the pension committee which manages the scheme, said: "We invest in legal companies which provide the best value for taxpayers and pensioner's money. If the money put aside in the pension fund to pay for employees pensions isn't enough, council taxpayers have to make up the difference.

"Investments are made in line with the advice of professional investment advisers. I have no intention of changing to a situation where investments are made in line with the political views of individual councillors."

The fund performed badly last financial year, falling in value by 22 per cent to be worth £738 million in March 2009. Its value has since recovered and at December 31 2009 was worth £976 million.

Source: This is Gloucestershire - 26 February 2010
Link: http://bit.ly/ct6OCE

Government minister: 'smoking ban has not closed pubs'

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The smoking ban has not caused pubs to close, according to public health minister Gillian Merron MP.

Despite figures showing around 40 pubs a week are currently closing Merron said the ban was not a factor in this.

She was speaking today at a meeting of the health committee in Westminster as it looked at ways the government is tackling health issues.

Merron said: “The pub trade does have challenges and I am aware of that but it isn’t the case that the ban had led to pub closures.”

She went on to describe the smoking ban of 2007 as a “tremendous success” and said it had the support of 80 per cent of the public and that there has been a 95 per cent compliance rate with smoke free legislation.

In a wide-ranging debate Merron went on to say that minimum pricing has not been ruled out as a way of tackling alcohol-related problems.

She said the Home Office is conducting more research on minimum pricing but added that while “price is an issue” it was not the only factor that needed to be addressed.

“I do think price has an impact and it is one of a range of factors,” she said.

Adding that education, treatment, and the environment people drink in also needed to be considered.

The committee has backed research that shows a minimum price per unit of alcohol of 40p would take some of the strain off the NHS.

Merron also denied suggestions from the panel that the government was “too close” to the industry and that it would regulate on labelling if the industry did not act quickly to include the appropriate information on bottles and glasses.

Source: The Publican - 26 February 2010
Link: http://bit.ly/auhrmQ

Hong Kong plans to abolish inbound duty free tobacco allowances

The government of Hong Kong is planning to abolish inbound duty free allowances for travellers, citing “public health reasons”. The move will come as a blow to retailers such as Sky Connection, which operates the Arrivals duty free concession at Hong Kong International Airport under the Free Duty brand. 

The move also brings Hong Kong in line with countries such as Singapore, which do not allow inbound duty free tobacco purchases.

Inbound duty free allowances in Hong Kong had already been slashed in April 2007 from 200 to 60 sticks (or 15 cigars or 75 grams of other manufactured tobacco) per person.

Announcing the government’s budget for 2010-2011 yesterday, Financial Secretary John Tsang said: “For public health reasons, I increased tobacco duty substantially by 50% last year. This year I propose to abolish the duty free concessions on tobacco products for incoming passengers.

"To facilitate law enforcement, small amounts of tobacco products for own consumption will be exempted. The Food and Health Bureau and Customs and Excise Department will announce the details. This measure will take effect on completion of the legislative process.” This could mean the new rules come into force at the end of 2010, according to local reports. 

On the wider issue of tobacco duties, Tsang added: “Tobacco duty in Hong Kong currently accounts for only about 60% of the retail prices of cigarettes, some way below the 75% recommended by the World Health Organization. The retail prices of cigarettes in Hong Kong are also lower than those in some international cities.

"The Food and Health Bureau will closely monitor the effectiveness of the various tobacco control measures in the year ahead. I will consider a phased increase in Hong Kong’s tobacco duty based on the Bureau's recommendations.”

Source: The Moodie Report - 25 February 2010
Link: http://bit.ly/co9eXw

Snuff just as addictive as cigarettes

People who use smokeless tobacco, or "snuff," are just as hooked on nicotine as cigarette smokers, if not more so, new research from Sweden shows.

And those who smoke and use snuff may be especially nicotine-dependent, Dr. Ann Post of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and her colleagues found.

The researchers looked at more than 800 teen boys and girls who used tobacco, including 466 who only smoked cigarettes, 209 who only used snus (the traditional Swedish type of snuff), and 144 who used both. Eighty-seven percent of the entire group reported having symptoms of nicotine dependence. The average age of the study participants was around 18.

Post and her team looked at nine different symptoms of nicotine dependence, including using tobacco within a half-hour of waking up in the morning; using tobacco despite being sick; and trying to quit and failing. They also asked the study participants whether they'd experienced any of 12 different withdrawal symptoms when they stopped using tobacco, such as craving, restlessness, and difficulty concentrating.

All but two of the nicotine dependence symptoms were more frequent among exclusive snus users than among smokers, the researchers found, while every symptom was more common among the dual users than the exclusive smokers. For example, around 70 percent of the exclusive smokers said they felt addicted to tobacco, compared to nearly 80 percent of the snus-only users and about 90 percent of the dual users.

The risk of withdrawal symptoms for exclusive snus users and exclusive smokers was fairly similar, but the snus plus tobacco users were two to five times as likely to experience these symptoms as exclusive smokers.

Eighty percent of both snus users and dual users said they had used tobacco on the day of the survey, the researchers note, compared to 56 percent of the smokers, "probably indicating a more advanced stage of progression toward regular use."

They also found that the snus-only users reported fewer quit attempts than the smokers.

"The findings in this study," the researchers say, "support the conclusion that smokeless tobacco in adolescence has a potential to induce nicotine dependence which is at least as high as for cigarette smoking."

Source: Reuters - 25 February 2010
Link: http://bit.ly/cEy2JF

Leicester: Mum hit in face after asking man to stop smoking on bus

A Leicester mum was punched to the ground by a bus passenger after she asked him to stop smoking.

Jane Austin, from Beaumont Leys, Leicester, suffered a black eye and bruises to her face and chin when she was confronted by the man as he tried to get off the bus.

She needed hospital treatment after he punched her in the face. The 42-year-old mum-of-two will find out today if the retina in her left eye was detached as a result of the blow.

Mrs Austin said she had been left "stunned and shocked" by the assault. She said: "He must have punched me with some force because I can't remember the punch, just hitting the floor. I am a smoker, but I know smoking on the bus is illegal. I was only asking him to put the cigarette out. I never expected any repercussions."

Mrs Austin had been on her way home from work when she boarded the number 54 First bus in Charles Street, Leicester, for Beaumont Leys. When she sat down on the top deck, she saw a man smoking a cigarette and asked him to put it out, but was ignored.

She said her request was ignored twice more, so she went to tell the driver. The driver then stopped the bus in Abbey Park Road, and went upstairs to order the man off.

Mrs Austin and the driver then went back downstairs to the front of the bus, where the attack happened.

She said: "The lad came down and he was trying to open the doors. The next thing I knew the doors were open and I was on the floor and he had run off. Some people have said to me it could have been much worse, but I do not think people should get away with it and that they should be challenged. I never thought for a minute I would end up in hospital just because I asked someone to stop smoking."

The attack took place on Tuesday, February 10, at about 5.35pm.

Steve Zanker, commercial director for First Midlands, said the company was working closely the police to help them catch the suspect.

He said: "These sorts of incidents are not very frequent on our buses. This was very unfortunate and we hope the victim has not been seriously injured. Smoking on buses is against the law. If any passengers are unhappy with the conduct or behaviour of fellow passengers they should tell the driver, who can radio the situation through to control."

A police spokeswoman said officers were investigating, and issued a description of the suspect. He is described as black, between 18 and 22 years old, around 5ft 8ins and 6ft tall and slim. He was wearing black jacket and black jeans.

Source: This is Leicester - 25 February 2010
Link: http://bit.ly/a6YpCc

Nottingham: Lung cancer timebomb for women smokers

Lung cancer rates are on the rise among Nottingham women – and health experts say it could be years before the trend is reversed.

The number of women dying from lung cancer increased from 49 in 2005 to 80 in 2008 – a 63% rise. And Nottingham's long-term rate is rising faster than in other industrial cities such as Newcastle and Manchester. The increase is the legacy of historical high smoking rates among women, which peaked in the 1970s.

But smoking rates are still high and have been rising over recent years. Currently, 39% of adults in the city smoke, which is double the national average.

And health officials have warned the lung cancer rates in Nottingham will remain high compared to the rest of the country if such a high proportion of people continue smoking.

Dr Chris Packham, director of public health at NHS Nottingham City, said: "The concern is that if smoking rates are rising now we are potentially storing up trouble for ourselves in 20 or 30 years time."

It is thought Nottingham's lung cancer rates could be going up faster because of a historically high smoking rate and the presence of the tobacco industry.

Some parts of the city still have more adult smokers than non-smokers. In areas such as The Meadows the rate is as high as 59%, whereas in Wollaton only 20% smoke.

Deputy Director of Public Health Dr Jeanelle de Gruchy said officials needed to "help people now to stop smoking and make sure they don't start."

She said: "We need to make sure we do everything we can to make sure children in the city don't start smoking. Ultimately smoking is the reason why someone in Aspley dies five years earlier than someone in Wollaton."

Helen Morledge, a community volunteer for Change Makers in Clifton, said she saw a lot of young women smoking in some parts of the city.

She said: "We will stop them and talk to them and they are often not aware of the symptoms of lung cancer. It is not ignorance, it is just that nobody has told them about the symptoms."

As part of the Decade of Better Health scheme launched in the city last month city officials have pledged to tackle smoking.

It is hoped to get residents smoking five million fewer cigarettes a week by 2020.

Dr Packham said he hopes lung cancer death rates will start to drop as a result in five years.

Source: This is Nottingham - 26 February 2010
Link: http://bit.ly/9keaD1