We'd like to help
Wednesday, October 12, 2011 at 4:40PM I have been following the Dail debates on tobacco with interest.
The various pompous speeches, led by Dr James Reilly, have been filled with vitriol directed against smokers as a justification to make the most expensive cigarettes in the EU even more expensive.
On behalf of the humble smoker, Forest Eireann made representation to Minister Noonan some time ago, pointing out that pricing of tobacco here had gone beyond the point where an increase in tax would yield an increase in Revenue. This point was later confirmed by the Revenue Commissioners themselves.
There are calls in many quarters for a €2.00 increase on the pack of twenty, bringing the price to €10.65 a pack. At this point in time, every smoker will know of someone locally who can supply a box twenty for as little as €4.00. Forest Eireann vehemently opposes the activities of criminals who profit greatly from bad laws passed in our Dail, but we have a certain sympathy for the harassed smoker who is offered 200 cigarettes for €40.00. It amounts to a less than half-priced bargain.
The opportunity for smuggling tobacco products on an industrial scale was created by short sighted politicians who listened too eagerly to pressure groups pursuing their own agenda. When the ordinary smoker is approached now with an incredible offer on cheap cigarettes, they can be forgiven for not looking at the big picture at that very moment. It is neither a sign of support for paramilitaries nor an act of defiance aimed at the Government. Rather it is an act of micro-economic common sense at a the time, similar to spotting a bargain in the supermarket. Smokers have not been asked whether they support the tax increases on their tobacco products, but you could imagine that if they were, they might oppose them.
The debates on the issue continued last week, and I was heartened to read Brian Hayes (Fine Gael), say that, "The average price of a packet of cigarettes here is €8.65 whereas in Hungary it is €2.06, meaning that smokers in Ireland are paying top dollar. Raising tax on tobacco further would encourage the illicit trade……" At F.E., we would take that further.
We would suggest that "forcing" smokers to quit is wrongheaded and counter productive. Raising prices to a point where the legal product is beyond their reach, simply pushes the innocent smoker into the arms of the criminal. Marginalising and excluding the smoker may silence them, but it does not convince them. Attempts to humiliate or embarrass smokers for engaging in a legal habit does not make the smoker respect the laws more diligently. And excluding the smoker from the decisions that affect them only, does not make for laws based on consensus.
Forest Eireann would happily engage with our political decision makers if invited to do so We could help to plot a course that would cater for the rights of smokers and non-smokers alike, produce policies that would remove the profits from the smugglers and destroy their business, and provide realistic services that could actually succeed in helping those who wish to quit. Our contact details are above!
Reader Comments (1)
There lies the problem John. They are not listening to what smokers or their representatives have to say and when it comes to smoking, health and behaviour, we really are the experts not the guessers.