Tag: smoking

  • UK parliament debates law phasing out smoking

    UK parliament debates law phasing out smoking

    London, United Kingdom – The UK parliament on Tuesday kicked off its first debate on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s planned flagship legislation to prevent young people from smoking, despite opposition from many in his own Conservative Party.

    The law would ban the selling of tobacco products to anyone born after January 1, 2009 –- effectively raising the smoking age by a year each year until it applies to the whole population.

    “This has the potential to phase out smoking in young people almost completely as early as 2040,” the government said when it unveiled the plan, calling the move “historic”.

    While the law looks set to pass thanks to support from opposition parties — including Labour, which is expected to win a general election due this year — Sunak faces the prospect of a rebellion from backbench Tory MPs.

    The beleaguered leader has little political capital to expend within his fractured party as he struggles to revive its fortunes following months of dire polling.

    Smoking is the UK’s biggest preventable killer and opinion polls show that around two-thirds of people in the UK back a phased smoking ban.

    However, libertarian-leaning MPs on the right of the ruling Conservatives, including former prime minister Liz Truss, have branded the move an attack on personal freedoms.

    Conservative MP Simon Clarke told BBC radio that he was “both sceptical and downright opposed” to the plans.

    “I think that an outright ban risks being counterproductive, I think it actually risks making smoking cooler, it certainly risks creating a black market, and it also risks creating a unmanageable challenge for the authorities,” he said.

    Former prime minister Boris Johnson also said at an event in Canada last week it was “mad” that the party of Winston Churchill was “banning cigars”.

    Vaping clamp down

    Opening the debate for the government, Health Secretary Victoria Atkins told the House of Commons that there is “no liberty in addiction”.

    “Nicotine robs people of their freedom to choose. The vast majority of smokers start when they are young, and three quarters say that if they could turn back the clock they would not have started,” she said.

    MPs are due to vote on whether to approve the plans for the next stage of the legislative process on Tuesday evening.

    Conservative MPs have been given a free vote, meaning they are able to defy the government without fear of being suspended from the party.

    Westminster watchers will closely study the size of the rebellion to see what it suggests about Sunak’s authority, amid reports that some cabinet members are considering voting against.

    The proposed ban was supposedly inspired by a similar plan in New Zealand which was later dropped.

    Official figures show smoking causes about one in four deaths from cancer and leads to 64,000 deaths in England per year.

    “If parliament passes this new bill, it will put the UK at the very forefront of the fight to eradicate one of the most harmful inventions of modern times,” said Lion Shahab, co-director of the tobacco and alcohol research group at University College London.

    The legislation also seeks to clamp down on young people vaping by restricting flavours and packaging to make less appealing to children.

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    © Agence France-Presse

  • Why did Shahid Kapoor stop smoking?

    Why did Shahid Kapoor stop smoking?

    Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor revealed that he has quit smoking for his daughter Misha. Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor appeared on ‘No Filter Neha’, hosted by Bollywood actress Neha Dhupia. During the show, Neha asked him about quitting smoking.

    “I quit smoking a few years ago, after the birth of my daughter Misha. Before that, I used to smoke secretly away from my daughter.”

    He explained, “I quit smoking because I didn’t want to hide and smoke in front of my daughter. That’s the main reason why I decided to quit smoking.”
    The Bollywood superstar shared, “One day, I was hiding and smoking in front of my daughter when suddenly I realized I didn’t want to do this anymore. That was the day I decided to quit smoking.”

    Shahid Kapoor got married to Mira Rajput in 2015, and they have two children, a son named Zain and a daughter named Misha.

  • Health activists urge govt to impose higher taxes on cigarettes for public welfare

    Health activists urge govt to impose higher taxes on cigarettes for public welfare

    Health activists and civil society organizations are calling on the government to impose higher taxes on cigarettes in the upcoming 2023-24 budget, signaling a potential increase in smoking costs for Pakistani consumers.

    Advocates argue that regular tax hikes on tobacco products, in line with the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), are necessary to combat the detrimental effects of smoking in the country.

    Sanaullah Ghumman, representing Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH), emphasised the importance of consistent taxation on cigarettes, urging the government to align with WHO guidelines. Ghumman’s plea reflects the growing concern over the devastating health consequences associated with tobacco consumption.

    Malik Imran, Country Head of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK), highlighted the impact of the government’s recent decision to raise the Federal Excise Duty (FED) on cigarettes in February 2023. This move generated an additional Rs11.3 billion in FED revenue for the fiscal year 2022-23, marking a 9.7 per cent increase from the previous year. Moreover, an extra 4.4 billion in VAT revenue was collected during the same period, representing an 11.5 per cent rise. These figures amount to a substantial boost of 15.7 billion, contributing 0.201 per cent to Pakistan’s struggling economy.

    Imran dismissed the tobacco industry’s claims of illicit trade as a diversion tactic to undermine the benefits of increased taxation. He emphasised that the economic gains resulting from higher prices indicate the viability of this approach, which aids in curbing smoking-related healthcare costs.

  • Loneliness as dangerous to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day: US Surgeon General

    Loneliness as dangerous to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day: US Surgeon General

    The Surgeon General of the United States of America (USA), Vivek Murthy, has said that loneliness poses a health risk equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. He made the comments while talking to the BBC regarding the prevalence of loneliness in the US.

    Murthy – one of the highest ranking health officials in the country-said that the problem affects nearly half of all Americans and he has also experienced it himself.

    He urged US health authorities to treat loneliness as seriously as they treat obesity or drug abuse.

    “I had neglected my family and my friends during that time, thinking that it was too hard to focus on work, and focus on family and friends,” said Murthy while talking about his own experience.

    “I was really suffering from the consequences of that, which were a profound sense of loneliness that followed me for weeks, which stretched into months,” he added.
    Experiencing loneliness has been linked to a significant increase in the chances of premature death, by up to almost 30 per cent. This increased risk is associated with various health problems such as diabetes, hearts attacks, insomnia, and dementia.

  • Man fined $11,000 for taking 4,500 smoke breaks during 14 years of employment

    A Japanese government employee has been fined approximately $11,000 for smoking more than 4,500 times during the course of his 14-year employment.

    The human resource department discovered a secret stash of tobacco owned by the man and two other employees in the organisation.

    The 61-year-old director-level employee was deemed to have violated the “duty of devotion” under the Local Public Service Act.

    Osaka has stringent smoking regulations that are mandated by law. Since 2008, smoking has been prohibited on government property, including offices and public institutions. 2019 saw the addition of smoking prohibitions at work.

  • New Zealand passes world’s first tobacco law to prevent future generations from smoking

    New Zealand passes world’s first tobacco law to prevent future generations from smoking

    As part of its attempts to become smoke-free by 2025, New Zealand has passed new regulations. The newest legislation prohibits anyone under the age of 14 from ever being able to legally purchase cigarettes. The decision to ban smoking for the next generation would be a first in the world.

    According to associate health minister Ayesha Verrall, “Thousands of people will live longer, healthier lives and the health system will be $5bn better off from not needing to treat the illnesses caused by smoking, such as numerous types of cancer, heart attacks, strokes, amputations.”

    The laws passed their final reading on Tuesday evening and will come into force in 2023. The number of stores legally allowed to sell cigarettes will be reduced to a tenth of their existing levels – from 6,000 to just 600 countrywide.

    Tobacco will not be sold to anyone who was born on or after January 1, 2009, in New Zealand, which will be the first country in the world to specify the age for smoking that increases every year.

    The amount of nicotine that is legally allowed to be present in tobacco products will be drastically reduced, and instead of being sold in corner stores and supermarkets, they will have to only be sold through specific tobacco stores, according to The Guardian.

    These laws will also be accompanied by a number of other initiatives to make smoking more expensive and less accessible.

  • PANAH suggests tobacco taxes be raised even higher

    PANAH suggests tobacco taxes be raised even higher

    Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH) has proposed that the government increase tariffs on unnecessary and harmful tobacco products. Increased tobacco-related levies will lessen diseases and healthcare expenses while also helping to generate tax revenue.

    Sanaullah Ghumman, PANAH’s General Secretary, announced this at a news conference held by the Pakistan National Heart Association on Wednesday at a local hotel.

    Smoking, according to Sanaullah Ghumman, is not healthy for human health in any aspect, and it is the first step toward addiction. Health experts and civil society groups have also urged the Prime Minister to increase tobacco goods taxes.

    A significant number of health experts and civil society representatives attended the event. Tobacco kills 8 million people worldwide each year, according to a global study, and more than 1.5 million individuals in Pakistan lose their lives each year owing to smoking.

    On World Food Safety Day, PANAH proposed that tariffs on sugary drinks be increased as well, as these beverages are harmful to children and cause a variety of health problems.

    Sanaullah Ghumman spoke at the event, urging a 30 per cent rise in tobacco product taxes to protect minors from tobacco usage.

    “This will be a win-win situation for us,” he continued, “since it will lower the health burden while also dramatically increasing revenue”. PANAH, he claimed, had been educating the public about a variety of dangerous diseases, including heart disease and its causes, for 39 years.

  • Tobacco companies in Pakistan may bump cigarette prices

    Tobacco companies in Pakistan may bump cigarette prices

    Farmers have asked the government and firms to increase the price of future tobacco products in accordance with the current price hikes in pesticides, fertilisers, and other crop preparation and selling charges.

    On May 9, the demand was made at a meeting of Ittehad-e-Kashtkaran in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The participants agreed that the government should reduce agricultural inputs because pesticide, fertiliser, and other costs have risen dramatically.

    Attendees suggested that the price of tobacco be set at Rs350 per kilogramme so that growers may meet the current price increases in pesticides, fertilisers, and other expenses spent during crop preparation and marketing.

    The newly elected officials also encouraged the government to create favourable local marketplaces for agricultural products to aid hardworking farmers. They demanded that the government and tobacco businesses pay the farmers’ outstanding debts immediately.

    Read more: Open market: Lemon being sold at Rs1,100 per kg in Lahore

    Growers also asked the government to develop a policy to prevent tobacco-related industries from moving from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Azad Kashmir and other provinces.

    It should be noted that tobacco is grown in Pakistan, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa accounting for 80 per cent of total production.

    Tobacco products also give Rs135 billion to the federal budget, while the tobacco development tax contributes Rs980 million to the provincial budget.

  • Man reportedly divorces wife after finding out she used to smoke before marriage

    Man reportedly divorces wife after finding out she used to smoke before marriage

    A man in Saudi Arabia has reportedly divorced his wife after learning that she was a smoker before they got married. According to media reports, the husband who is a Saudi national, told his lawyer last week that he wanted to divorce his wife because he was afraid she might resume smoking.

    He that since there was “no guarantee” that the woman would not start smoking again, her habit might “hurt his social status”.  The man’s lawyer stated that the wife admitted to her husband that she used to smoke before they married.

    The husband also elaborated that he dislikes smoking ladies. As a result, he filed for divorce. The court ruled in favour of the man and ordered the lady to repay the dowry she received from her husband at the time of the wedding.

  • PTI MNA says women smoking cigarettes cause divorce

    PTI MNA says women smoking cigarettes cause divorce

    PTI Member of National Assembly (MNA) and Parliamentary Secretary for Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination, Nausheen Hamid, while addressing an audience, said that, “girls are very involved in cigarette smoking.”

    Read More – Is Mahira Khan glorifying abusive relationships in Pakistani dramas?

    She went on to say that, “I personally know of homes where smoking became a habit for girls and when they got married, they were unable to quit. [The smoking] created social issues with their in-laws and eventually led to divorce.”

    Twitter hit her hard with criticism about her comments.

    https://twitter.com/ManiacKumar/status/1466017986838507529
    https://twitter.com/sarmadrafi7/status/1466005946547773447
    https://twitter.com/TheMichi7/status/1466004275797110789

    In a recent survey, 58% of Pakistanis believe that divorce rates in Pakistan have increased in the country. 2 out of  every 5 Pakistanis believe that the in-laws are responsible for most of these cases, revealed the survey.