Tobacco.org

Smoking service for young people 

Scotland's first smoking information service for young people - run by young people - is launching in Glasgow.

Why Waste Everything Smoking Tobacco? (W-West) aims to provide information to inform choices about smoking.

Young people living in the west of Scotland can sign up to W-West via its website, which is being run by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GGC).

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OAP caught with 4,000 cigarettes at airport claims they were for personal use  

A PENSIONER caught bringing almost 4,000 cigarettes into Scotland from Spain claimed he smoked 100 cigarettes-a-day in a bid to avoid paying tax on them.

Retired engineer Robert Stevenson said his chain-smoking habit meant the cigarettes were for personal use and denied he was importing them for "commercial purposes".

But a sheriff rejected his claim, and said he did not believe the 65-year-old had the money or the time to smoke five packets a day – equal to one cigarette every ten minutes.

Mr Stevenson, from Tweed Street, Grangemouth, was stopped by customs officers at Edinburgh Airport in January 2008 after returning from a three-day trip to Malaga.

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• Scottish teenagers smoke and drink less  

Contrary to their reputation, fewer Scottish teenagers are smoking, drinking and - amongst boys at least - taking cannabis than they were two years ago, official figures released yesterday show.

However, the 2008 Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey does show changes in habits which may worry health experts. While the use of drink and drugs continues to decline, those who do partake are highly likely to truant or be excluded from school.

There is also disappointment that despite the rise in the minimum purchase age for cigarettes from 16 to 18 in 2007, rates of smoking among 15-year-old boys have increased. . . .

Where cigarettes were concerned, the numbers of 13 and 15-year-old girls who are regular smokers continues to decline. The proportion of pupils who reported they never smoked has gone up from 69 to 75 per cent of 13-year-olds and 47 to 51 per cent of 15-year-olds.

However, although it is illegal to sell cigarettes to children under the age of 18, 42 per cent of 13-year-old regular smokers and 57 per cent of 15-year-old regular smokers reported buying cigarettes from a shop. A significant number also bought from vending machines.

Family and peer group pressure was evident: the majority of children who smoked had parents who did, and more than a third said all or almost all their friends smoked.

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Protect Children From The Allure Of Smoking, Say Doctors 

BMA Scotland has warned that children who smoke face years of tobacco addiction that can lead to life-threatening diseases and premature death.

The association also called on MSPs to support the proposals contained in the Tobacco and Primary Medical services (Scotland) Bill in order to reduce children's exposure to tobacco products.

Findings in the Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey (SALSUS) published today show that although it is illegal to sell cigarettes to children under the age of 18, 42% of 13 year old regular smokers and 57% of 15 year old regular smokers reported buying cigarettes from a shop and 13% of 13 year old regular smokers and 10% of 15 year old regular smokers from a vending machine.

In order to achieve a smokefree Scotland by 2035, BMA Scotland wants to see a robust approach to tobacco control in order to reduce the number of teens who smoke.

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New drive aims to help 11,000 smokers stub out their habit  

MORE than 11,000 smokers in the Lothians will be given extra help to quit in the next two years under fresh plans.

Targets issued by NHS Scotland have shown that, if successful, it would help reduce the number of smokers in the area by eight per cent by 2011 – a significant dent in statistics.

The local health board has already made considerable progress in coaxing some of the 140,000 Lothians smokers away from cigarettes.

But the Scottish Government wants more to be done, particularly among teenagers and pregnant women.

In order to provide the help NHS Lothian will have to find 11,000 smokers who are already one month into the quitting process. Experts deem this a key time where many lapse back into the habit unless provided with more support, such as cessation classes and one-to-one help.

More training has already been organised for community pharmacy staff to help cessation projects, while more staff have been taken on with the objective of reducing smoking.

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Proposal to ban tobacco displays an 'unproven gimmick'  

THE Scottish Government's proposal to ban tobacco displays were yesterday branded an "unproven gimmick" by retailers.

Members of the Tobacco Retailers Alliance hit out at the proposal as the results of a survey were disclosed.

The survey suggested 75 per cent of small shopkeepers in Scotland believe the display ban will directly threaten their business, while 89 per cent said they believed the government had not listened to their opinions.

And six in every ten retailers are worried that the display ban will take trade away from them to larger stores.

The poll questioned 83 Scottish retailers, as part of a wider UK study, and found 54 per cent of them believe the display ban may increase retail crime.

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New crackdown on cigarettes  

ADULTS who buy cigarettes for children could be prosecuted under proposed new laws.

Shona Robison, the public health minister, told the parliament's health committee yesterday that she would consider introducing the measure.

Ms Robison was being questioned by MSPs on new laws proposed by the Scottish Government to curb sales of tobacco and cigarettes to young people. Nationalist MSP Michael Matheson said while it was illegal for an adult to buy alcohol and pass it to youngsters, there was no such provision for tobacco.

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Fierce Lobbying Continues in War over Tobacco Display and Vending Machines 

A committee of the Scottish Parliament has been hearing evidence in Stage 1 of the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services Bill,(1) which proposes to ban the use of tobacco vending machines and the display of tobacco products.

The British Medical Association has declared to the media that many of its opponents in the debate are tainted by tobacco funding and that the primary concern of these organisations is financial,(2) and has urged the Scottish Government ‘not to be swayed’ by their evidence.

Freedom To Choose (Scotland) has already published evidence that Tobacco Control activities throughout the world are heavily backed by pharmaceutical interests who have an enormous stake in the war against the tobacco industry.(3)

The Health & Sport Committee has received written responses from various organisations, including those with vested interests on both sides of the debate. It has also received well-argued responses from independent, self-funded organisations including civil liberty organisations and a retailers’ alliance.

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Anti-smoking group calls for industry to show advertising costs  

TOBACCO companies should be forced to publish their spending on advertising and promotion, a city charity has said.

Anti-smoking lobbying group ASH said since billboard advertising and sponsorship of tobacco products was banned in 2003, large organisations have found other ways of selling their brand.

Chief executive Sheila Duffy said the Scottish Government should take steps to monitor the spending to prevent the number of new smokers in the country.

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British Man Moving to Deserted Island to Quit Smoking  

Smoker Geoff Spice is to spend a month on an uninhabited island in a desperate bid to quit cigarettes.

Geoff, 56 -- who began smoking at 13 -- will be dropped off with just a tent, food and water on tiny Sgarabhaigh in the Outer Hebrides, off the coast of Scotland.

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MSPs debate tobacco advertising 

An MSP brandished a packet of cigarettes in front of an anti-smoking campaigner in a row over tobacco advertising.

Tory Mary Scanlon held up the packet in front of Sheila Duffy, the chief executive of Ash Scotland, during a meeting of Holyrood's Health and Sport Committee.

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Campaigners Claim Scottish Public Backs Curbs On Tobacco Sales 

New proposals aimed at curbing tobacco sales have the backing of the Scottish public, anti-smoking campaigners said today.

Sheila Duffy, the chief executive of Ash Scotland, said the majority of people supported measures put forward by the Scottish Government.

Ministers want to outlaw cigarette vending machines and are also proposing to ban tobacco displays in shops.

In addition the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Bill aims to introduce a registration scheme for retailers.

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Thousands More Scots Trying To Quit Smoking 

Thousands more Scots are trying to quit smoking, "encouraging" figures showed today.

Annual statistics highlighted an increase from 44,019 to 50,121 in attempts to kick the habit.

More than one third of those trying to stop said they had not smoked "even a puff" two weeks later - but this success rate drops to 18% after three months.

Public Health Minister Shona Robison said: "Many people find stopping smoking hard but it's also the single biggest thing anyone can do to improve their health.

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More Scottish smokers attempting to quit  

New figures have revealed that more smokers in Scotland are attempting to quit.

The figures, released by the NHS Information Services Division, show that 4.8% of smokers attempted to quit using an NHS smoking cessation service during 2008 - up from 4.2% in 2007.

Key findings of the statistics include the fact that 14% more quit attempts were made in 2008, up from 44,019 to 50,121. They also found that 44% of quit attempts were made using pharmacy-based smoking cessation services and that 38% were still smoke-free a month after quitting.

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Quitter quits cigarette quitting scheme 

A DUNDEE woman who helped launch a controversial scheme that pays smokers to give up tobacco has quit the scheme.

Eight weeks after NHS Tayside launched quit4u, which pays £12.50 a week to those who can prove they are smoke free, Suzanne Cuthbertson says she has “quit” smoking, but had to abandon the scheme and go it alone.

She said her hectic lifestyle made it impossible for her to attend the weekly classes for those signed up to the programme.

To qualify for the payments, would-be quitters have to take a breath test to prove they have remained smoke free, and attend an hour-long class every week, at which they get support to give up tobacco.

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