Tobacco control measures

Proposals to reduce the number of young people from smoking tobacco have drawn a mixed response from campaigners.

While groups agree the government is right to try and stop teenagers from taking up smoking, some claim that its proposals will harm shopkeepers while others say there is little evidence they will work.

In its consultation document, The Future of Tobacco Control, the Department of Health outlines a number of initiatives to make it harder for young people to smoke.

Plans include removing branding and logos from all tobacco packaging; restricting the display of tobacco products in shops; and banning the advertising of smoking paraphernalia, such as cigarette papers.

The document also proposes that cigarettes should be sold in a minimum of packs of 20, as most young people can only afford packs of ten, and that a ban on cigarette vending machines could be put in place.

The government has decided to target smoking in the young as although the take-up of smoking in young people is lower than a decade ago over 200,000 of all under 16's start smoking each year.

As a result they are three times more likely to die of cancer due to smoking than someone who starts in their mid-20s.

"Protecting children from smoking is a government priority and taking away temptation is one way to do this," said public health minister Dawn Primarolo.

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