SpaIN THE WRONG
DIRECTION
Daily cigarette smoking in Spain has gone
up to 34 percent: two points higher than
before the public smoking ban came into
force in 2005. That’s according to Spain’s
latest biannual drug consumption survey.
The Spanish government is accused
of being “self-complacent and passive”
after “alarming” new figures revealed that
smoking rates have climbed above pre-
smoking ban levels. National Committee
for Tobacco Prevention president D r
Regina Dalmau said she was
“indignant” at the findings and has called
for enforcement of existing policies plus
the introduction of new measures to
tackle the problem. The cardiologist said:
“We will have to analyse in detail what
sections of the population have seen an
increase in smoking, but in any of them,
the data is alarming.”
NO DEAL?
Firstly, if no agreement is reached in
Westminster on how hard or soft the UK
will exit the EU, the picture warnings on
tobacco products will change in the UK.
The Australian government will provide
their warnings free of cost to the UK in
such a case.
Secondly, where there is a no deal the
UK will need to develop its own domestic
notification systems for companies
that wish to sell tobacco products
and e-cigarettes on the UK market.
A transfer of powers would also be
required. Currently, the EU Commission
holds a range of powers under the TPD
which allow it to respond to threats,
changes in safety compliance and quality
standards plus technological advances.
The instrument transfers these powers
from the Commission to the Secretary
of State.
GOOD BUY?
British American Tobacco has bought
Germany’s leading chain of vape shops,
Highendsmoke, according to market
intelligence leaders Ecigintelligence. With
more than 80 shops across the country, the
acquisition was approved by the German
Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt)
before the festive period.
NUMBER OF IRISH
SMOKERS TOO HIGH
Twenty years ago one third of Irish
adults smoked. That number now lies at
one-fifth. But experts warn the number
of smokers in Ireland is still too high.
The Royal College of Surgeons’ Dr
Paul Kavanagh, who advises the Irish
Health Service Executive (HSE) Quit
programme. Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning
Ireland radio programme, Dr Kavanagh
said the number of people smoking from
the age of 25 to 34 is a staggering one-
in-three. He said while the smoking rate
has fallen in the last 20 years, tobacco
still has a grip on the population and also
acknowledged vaping may have a role to
play in loosening that grip.
“We currently know that about three
percent in the population are using e
cigarettes and I think it’s very important
that we are open and honest with what we
know and do not know when it comes to
e-cigarettes. Vaping does deliver nicotine
but what’s different to smoking is that
people don’t burn tobacco, so the risk
profile associated with vaping is different
and that has been in a number of large
reports.”
SHAPE THE FUTURE
Researchers at the UK Centre for Tobacco
and Alcohol Studies (UKCTAS) want your
help in identifying the top 10 unanswered
questions on e-cigarette use. The online
survey takes about five minutes to
complete and is open to vapers, dual
users, smokers and never-smokers. Dr
Abby Hunter of Nottingham University’s
Division of Epidemiology and Public
Health, said these studies are essential,
“Because e-cigarettes are a fairly recent
product, very little is known about the
long-term health effects of using them. To
guide our future research into this we need
to identify the most important questions
associated with vaping and would like the
opinions of the general public as well as
clinicians.” The survey will be open until
March 7. Respondents will then be asked
to complete a follow-up survey to rank the
top 10 priority questions. To participate,
go to Nottingham.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/
electronic-cigarettes-priority-setting-
partnership-survey.
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