Working for a tobacco-free Scotland
31 May 2011
Anti-tobacco charity ASH Scotland today marked the WHO World No Tobacco Day by highlighting the growing use of tobacco in developing countries which now have to deal with 70% of all tobacco-related diseases as well as not having effective controls to curb the promotion and selling of cigarettes that many developed countries now have. Commenting Chief Executive Sheila Duffy said:
“Today is the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) World No Tobacco Day which WHO uses to highlight the enormous impact smoking has across the world as tobacco remains the biggest preventable cause of death. WHO estimates that more than five million people will die from a tobacco-related disease and a further 600,000 people will die from exposure to second-hand smoke this year alone and that tobacco use could kill one billion during the 21st century.
“In Scotland we are part of those statistics with a quarter of all adult deaths being caused by smoking, and thousands of people suffering from smoking-related diseases. Tobacco is unique in that it is legal but lethal. Tobacco companies are large profit-driven multi-national companies seeking to maximise sales and make the largest profits from their products, which when used as intended by the manufacturers, will kill half of all long term consumers.
“That is why laws and policies are important to not only protect people from the harm caused by smoking, but also to curb the way this product is marketed and sold – and especially how Big Tobacco recruits new smokers. Scotland has become a world leader in tobacco control recognising the historic high rates of smoking in our country and aiming to reduce the immense harm caused to our public health, both for smokers and non-smokers. Scotland has those controls now but this is not the case in many developing countries across the world and I hope that awareness days like today can show the harm caused by tobacco across the world.
“Research from around the world shows that whilst tobacco consumption has fallen over the past 20 years in most developed countries, it has increased hugely in developing countries especially in Asia and Africa. Many countries have been ruthlessly targeted by tobacco companies, with research showing that tactics have included smuggling, recruiting young smokers, and denying the health consequences of the harm caused by smoking (2).
“Of the 1.2 billion tobacco users in the world over 800 million live in developing countries and 70% of the total burden of tobacco-related diseases globally will occur in developing countries by 2030 (3, 4). Most of these countries do not have the healthcare systems and safeguards that we in Scotland rely on when we fall ill. Studies have shown that tobacco-related diseases are taking a “severe economic toll on health-care resources and thereby affects governments' ability to devote resources to other social priorities” (5).
“Tobacco manufacturers have been reported to be involved in organising smuggling of tobacco products in many developing countries with the aim of making tobacco cheap and available and countering any government efforts to control tobacco supply and consumption through increased taxation (6). This is a known tactic of the tobacco industry with their own internal documents and court judgments showing evidence of direct and indirect involvement by the tobacco industry in smuggling within the UK (7). This was one of the areas investigated during a House of Commons Health Select Committee Inquiry, during which time it became clear that although all the tobacco companies claimed to be opposed to smuggling, both British American Tobacco and Gallahers (acquired by Japan Tobacco International in 2007) were complicit in the illicit trade in tobacco to some degree (8).
“This shows that we need awareness days such as World No Tobacco Day which this year focuses on the WHO’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The FCTC is the first treaty negotiated by WHO with the aim of affirming the right of all people to the highest standard of health and providing a new legal framework for cooperation in tobacco control. Adopted in 2005, it has over 170 signatories including the UK. Through the FCTC and from learning from countries such as Scotland, I hope developing countries can be given the support and protection they need to stand up to tobacco companies and the toll tobacco is taking on their people and their public health.”
Find out more from the ASH Factsheet: Tobacco and the Developing World.
ENDS
Notes for Editors
1. Action on Smoking & Health (Scotland) (ASH Scotland) is an independent Scottish charity working in partnership to protect people from the harm caused by tobacco. Registered Scottish charity number SC010412.
2. Doku D, The tobacco industry tactics-a challenge for tobacco control in low and middle income countries, African Health Sciences 2010; 10(2): 201 – 203.
3. World Health Organisation news release 2011
4. Tobacco Atlas, 2008
5. Research for International Tobacco Control, At What Cost? The Economic Impact of Tobacco Use on National Health Systems, Societies, and Individuals
6. Global Tobacco Control. Learning from the experts
7. Joossens, L. and Raw, M. Progress in combating cigarette smuggling. Tobacco Control. 17(6): pp.399-404, 2008.
8. House of Commons Health Select Committee. The tobacco industry and the health risks of smoking. 2000.
Action on Smoking & Health (Scotland) (ASH Scotland) is a registered Scottish charity (SC 010412) and a company limited by guarantee(Scottish company no 141711). The registered office is 8 Frederick Street, Edinburgh EH2 2HB.
© 2012 ASH Scotland
ASH Scotland acknowledges with thanks the support of the British Heart Foundation and the Scottish Government in developing our website.
