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by linkup
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 3:22 am |
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http://icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0100regionalnews/tm_method=full%26objectid=19313348%26siteid=50061-name_page.html
Smokers face ban in own homesJun 18 2007
by Larry Neild, Liverpool Daily Post
PEOPLE in Liverpool face a ban on smoking in their own homes as part of new rules to outlaw exposure to second-hand smoke.
A council committee will this week discuss changes to the town hall’s existing anti-smoking policy to help staff fall in line with a new ban on smoking in public from July 1.
Residents in the city will be told not to smoke for at least half an hour prior to pre-arranged visits to their homes by council employees. They will also be asked to open windows if they have been smoking. And they will be told not to smoke during visits.
Although the council will not be able to force householders to comply with the measure, the council’s spokesman on smoking, Cllr Ron Gould, says he believes it will only be a matter of time before the voluntary ban becomes enforceable.
He said last night: “This is not about telling people whether they should or should not smoke, but it is a measure designed to protect council staff from exposure to second-hand smoke. It is not an unreasonable request and will be seen more and more from agencies that send staff into the homes of clients.
“We have planning officers, enforcement officers and a whole range of council personnel who are required to go to homes across the city as part of their jobs. We need to ensure they are protected.
“I believe that the smoking law will eventually be extended to cover situations where public servants visit people’s homes as part of their official duties.”
The proposed changes to the council no smoking policy were drawn up by the council’s own Health and Safety Unit.
It sets its objective as establishing a healthy environment for all people – councillors, employees, service users and the public – either employed or visiting council property or travelling in council vehicles.
The new smoking measures will not apply to people living in council-run residential accommodation. Residents there will be permitted to smoke in designated areas.
The report adds: “In circumstances where staff are undertaking prearranged visits, service users will be requested to refrain from smoking in their own homes prior to and during the visit.”
Risk assessment exercises will be carried out in cases where exposure to tobacco smoke cannot be prevented.
The new policy will be debated on Wednesday by the council’s resources and corporate services select committee.
Although the new law does not prevent smoking outdoors, the council will ban education staff from smoking in school playgrounds while those areas are being used by children under 16. A Liverpool City Council spokesperson said last night: “We are most emphatically not banning people from smoking in their own home.
“As of July 1 smoking is banned from all public work places. If a member of staff visits a resident’s home, this venue is then classed as a workplace for the purpose of the visit.
“We are asking people not to smoke for around 30 minutes before the appointment takes place, or recommend that they hold the meeting in a room where cigarettes haven’t been smoked.
“This is all about protecting the health of staff . This is a request, nothing more, nothing less. We’re sure most people will recognise this is a reasonable request for the health and safety of our staff.”
A spokesman for Forest, the pressure group established to defend the right to smoke, said last night the voluntary ban could lead to dangers if it became part of the law.
“Our view is that when somebody comes to your home it is common courtesy not to smoke if they do not want you to. The danger is that eventually these guidelines could be used to withhold council services from people who, through their council taxes, have paid for those services.” |
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linkup
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by linkup
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 3:41 am |
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Colin,where can I find a link to the official Press release:
LANDMARK LEGAL CHALLENGE TO NATIONAL UK BAN ON SMOKING NOW IMMINENT |
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linkup
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by cricket
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:17 pm |
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cricket
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by Lynda F
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 3:42 pm |
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Colin didn't post this when the Scottish ban went into effect. The Scottish governing party (?) did the same thing there. The English ban is just following suit.....just like the ban.  |
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Lynda F
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Location: Phoenix, AZ
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by Colin
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 4:10 pm |
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Link,
Here is the Press Release on our own site:
http://www.freedom2choose.co.uk/news_viewer.php?id=231
As Lynda says, we did not mobilise fast enough to mount a Judicial Review in Scotland (our ban was enacted on 26th March 2006) the English ban comes in on 1st July.
There are three JR's in the works. The opposition are suffering from TSS (Twitchy Sphincter Syndrome) and are spewing out more crappy studies than ever.....
We will have more news in 8 days or less. I will get back to yall with an update.
As far as Scotland goes, I have been asked to give evidence at a Petition Hearing at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh next week.
Wish me luck!
Cheers,
Colin. |
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Colin
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Location: Banff, Scotland
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by linkup
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 4:35 pm |
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/smoking/Story/0,,2106212,00.html
Researchers issue new warning on risks of smoking near babies
Sarah Boseley, health editor
Tuesday June 19, 2007
The Guardian
Parents who smoke near their newborn babies are turning their children into heavy passive smokers and putting them in danger of breathing problems and cot death, a new study shows.
Tiny babies with at least one parent who smokes have more than five times the usual level of cotinine - a chemical metabolite of nicotine - tests showed. The study, published online today by the journal Archives of Diseases in Childhood, found that having a mother who smoked was the biggest risk factor for a big build-up of cotinine in a baby's body.
"Babies and children are routinely exposed to cigarette smoke by their carers in the home without the legislative protection available to adults in public places," says the article by researchers from the University of Leicester medical school, and Warwick University.
They found that babies who had a mother who smoked had quadruple the amount of cotinine in their urine. Having a father who smoked doubled the amount of cotinine in the urine.
The researchers add that there are "practical difficulties" in preventing smoking in the home which require the goodwill of those who live there as well as education about the dangers to children. The best hope, say the authors, is the desire of mothers to do their best for their babies.
It is already known that smoking is linked to cot death, which claims around 300 babies' lives a year in the UK.
The researchers measured cotinine in 100 urine samples taken from babies less than 12 weeks old. Seventy of the babies had at least one parent who smoked, on average, 16 cigarettes a day. The other babies had non-smoking parents.
The tests also showed that cotinine levels were higher in babies whose rooms were not very warm. "'Smoking babies' tend to come from poorer homes which may have smaller rooms and inadequate heating," write the authors.
The babies also had higher cotinine levels in the winter months - when cot deaths tend to increase. This could be connected with windows being closed and parents being more inclined to smoke indoors, the study says.
Levels were also higher in babies who shared a bed with their parents, which is considered a risk for cot death. "One simple possible biological mechanism for this may be the direct inhalation or closeness to clothing or other objects contaminated with smoke particles, which in turn are passed to the baby during periods of close contact, such as during sleep," the authors say.
"Higher cotinine levels in colder times of year may be a reflection of the other key factors which influence exposure to passive smoking, such as poorer ventilation or a greater tendency for parents to smoke indoors in winter."
Nearly 40% of under-fives are believed to be exposed to tobacco smoke at home, and smoke may be responsible for up to 6,000 deaths a year in the US alone, in young children.
Health alerts
Heavy smokers (who consume more than 20 a day) are less likely to think passive smoking increases a child's risk of cot death or developing asthma than are ex-smokers or non-smokers, according to a Department of Health survey in 2005
The study also found that 74% of smokers said they would not smoke at all if they were in a room with children, compared with 47% who would not smoke at all in the company of adult non-smokers
More than a quarter (27%) of people age 16 and over were smokers in England in 2001, according to the Department of Health
Prevalence of smoking continued to be higher for people in manual socio-economic groups (32%) than non-manual (21%) |
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linkup
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by linkup
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 4:38 pm |
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http://healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=605648
Smokers' Infants Have High Nicotine Levels
Mom's habit quadruples concentration of cotinine in urine, study finds
TUESDAY, June 19 (HealthDay News) -- In homes where at least one parent smokes, infants have 5.5 times higher levels of a nicotine toxin called cotinine in their urine than infants of nonsmokers, a British study finds.
Cotinine is created as the body tries to get rid of the nicotine in inhaled smoke.
The study of 104 12-week-old infants (71 with at least one parent who smoked and 33 with nonsmoking parents) also found that having a mother who smoked quadrupled urine cotinine levels. Having a father who smoked doubled cotinine levels in an infant's urine, the researchers found.
Sleeping with parents and lower-temperature rooms were also associated with increased cotinine levels in infants, said the study by researchers at the University of Leicester Medical School and Warwick University.
"Babies affected by smoke tend to come from poorer homes, which may have smaller rooms and inadequate heating," the study authors wrote. "Higher cotinine levels in colder times of year may be a reflection of the other key factors which influence exposure to passive smoking, such as poorer ventilation or a greater tendency for parents to smoke indoors in winter."
The researchers also noted that sleeping with a parent is a known risk factor for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). They suggest that one reason for this could be an infant's proximity to parents' clothing or other objects contaminated with smoke particles.
The findings were published online Tuesday ahead of print in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood. |
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linkup
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by linkup
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 4:42 pm |
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/06/18/YBdragon.xml
Company: SmokersLife
Proposed by: Madush Gupta, Chief Executive
Smokers Club To Ignite With £250k
On 1st July, the date from which 12 million Britons will be alienated because they smoke, we will be launching SmokersLife: an online club for smokers that will act as the voice and market place for smokers.
Services include online dating as well as providing information on social venues that are best for smokers post the ban.
SmokersLife will discuss issues concerning smokers and the various consumer products available such as anti-ageing cosmetics, toothpaste / oral hygiene, smoking cessation kits (all patches, books, DVD's etc).
Our club will also provide access to insurance products (Home Contents, Life Assurance and Health Insurance) at significant discounts to the premium prices that smokers usually pay.
Furthermore, SmokersLife has been advised on a pioneering and legally acceptable operational and advertising format to effectively market tobacco products to consumers online, thus creating a financially viable business model with potentially significant returns.
UK duty paid cigarettes sold through SmokersLife will sell at wholesale prices ie £45 per carton compared to between £54 and £57 per carton in shops. Our research shows that there is no competition in the provision of targeted bespoke insurance products, legally available tobacco products or a community that directly communicates to and targets smokers.
We are currently seeking, via the Beer & Partners business angel network, £250,000 in return for equity in the company. This will be used to market the business to smokers in the UK, France and Germany enabling the company to develop projected sales of over £90 million by the end of Year 5.
A trade sale with three to five years is our preferred exit method and we expect a valuation of between 10 to 20 times earnings (BAT, for example, currently trades at 14 times current earnings). |
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linkup
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by linkup
on Tue Jun 19, 2007 4:48 pm |
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http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200wales/tm_headline=smoking-ban-encouraging-thousands-to-quit%26method=full%26objectid=19316696%26siteid=50082-name_page.html
Smoking ban encouraging thousands to quitJun 19 2007
by Darren Devine, Western Mail
WALES’ smoking ban has seen a massive increase in the number of smokers seeking help to give up.
The data comes less than a month before England follows Wales’ lead and becomes the final part of the UK to outlaw smoking in enclosed public places.
In the weeks leading to Wales’ ban on April 2, calls to the All-Wales Smoking Cessation Service surged by 30%.
This vindicates predictions that helplines would be inundated with inquiries. Doctors had called on politicians to ensure helplines were funded to meet demand.
Tanya Buchanan, of anti-smoking group Ash Wales, said the results match those in Scotland, where more smokers attempted to quit in the run up to the introduction of its March 2006 ban.
She said, “One in every 25 smokers has quit in Scotland since the ban came in there.”
Chris Lines, spokesman for the National Public Health Service for Wales, which runs the smoking helpline, said, “Broadly speaking before the ban was introduced the numbers of people coming to us increased by around 30%.
“Since the ban came into force we’ve seen an increase as well, but more in the region of around 10%. But summer is usually a quietish period.”
The NPHS says smokers who phone the cessation line are up to four times more likely to quit than those using other methods.
In 2005-6, 10,594 people contacted the service and of these 5,350 set themselves a quit date.
Up to 3,573 quit successfully after four weeks – around a third.
But pro-smoking group Forest says the difference in the numbers who quit following a ban is negligible.
Spokesman Neil Rafferty said, “The reality is that though more people might phone the quit lines it doesn’t lead to more people giving up.
“At the end of the first year of the smoking ban in Scotland smoking had only dropped by the same rate it would have done anyway – about 1.5%.
“Smoking bans don’t have any significant impact – people just lose their freedom of choice.”
Meanwhile it’s estimated beer sales at pubs, bars and clubs in England and Wales could drop significantly following the nations’ smoking bans.
The volume of all drinks sold by licensed premises in Scotland is down 5% year-on-year with the bulk of this due to the ban there, according to market researchers Nielsen.
Beer took the biggest hit with sales down 7% – around 36m pints – in the year to March 2007.
Lost beer sales across England and Wales following the ban could equate to 200m fewer pints being sold, Nielsen predicts.
But the Licensed Victuallers Association (LVA) in NorthWales and Cardiff-based brewer SA Brain say so far the Welsh smoking ban has had little impact on trade.
Both maintain it will not be possible to assess the long-term effects until after this winter.
Ken Thompson, the LVA’s North Wales secretary, said, “There’s been no significant drop in trade. We’ve had some very good weather and people are accepting going outside and smoking.
“We’ll have to see if this trend continues when the winter comes, but I don’t think it will.”
Chris Hewin, retail marketing manager for SA Brain, said, “As far as the direct effect is concerned, it is too early to work out a figure on how the ban has affected sales.
“We will have a much better idea this time next year when we have seen the winter through and have had a full year’s trading.”
The British Institute of Innkeeping (BII), which represents licensees across the UK, predicts that around 5,000 pubs will close over the next three to four years.
This will be caused by the existing closure rate being accelerated by the smoking ban, according to BII chief executive John McNamara. |
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linkup
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by linkup
on Wed Jun 20, 2007 6:36 pm |
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6762627.stm
What next for health campaigners?
By Lucy Rodgers
BBC News
The smoking ban from 1 July is a major victory for health activists, following the ban on tobacco advertising and warnings on cigarette packets. Is this all that they want?
A smoke-free indoor communal Britain is almost here - less than two weeks and counting.
From 1 July smokers wanting a cigarette at the pub will have to go outside. If they're lucky, it could be to a newly-created outdoor haven with parasols, sofas and heaters, as licensees are now keen to cater to the "four Fs" - females, families, food and (al) fresco.
COUNTDOWN TO LIGHTS OUT
On 1 July, smoking in enclosed public places will be banned across the UK
Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales already have such a ban; England's ban starts 1 July
The Magazine will count down the weeks with a series of articles about the impact of the ban on life in Britain
For those wanting a fag while at work, facilities will be a rather less salubrious government-compliant shelter.
With enclosed public places free of second-hand smoke, is it "job done" for anti-smoking campaigners?
Not yet. Activists say the ban - which the Department of Health estimates will save thousands of lives during the next decade - is a crucial step in the battle against the damage caused by passive smoke, but is still only part of the fight. The same is said of other recent successes, including getting the legal age to buy tobacco raised from 16 to 18.
"We never thought it was going to be a quick win," says Elspeth Lee, tobacco control manager for Cancer Research UK, which has been campaigning against smoking for more than 50 years, when the link between tobacco and cancer was first made by Sir Richard Doll.
Despite the widely publicised risks, a stalwart of smokers - estimated to be about 10 million - still puff away in the UK. More needs to be done to help them quit because of the huge burden on health, says Rory O'Connor, policy and publicity officer for the British Heart Foundation.
Veteran pressure group Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) says its dream of "a world free from the harm caused by tobacco" is still a long way off.
Number one on the wish-list of the anti-smoking brigade is licensing tobacco retailers to sell cigarettes, which would - among other things - make selling to underage children a criminal offence.
"This is a serious matter, anyone selling to a child is a conspirator in getting them hooked on a highly addictive drug," says Amanda Sandford, research manager for Ash.
In addition, Ash would like to see wider availability of products helping people to quit. "There are many outlets that sell cigarettes, but if you are trying to get hold of a nicotine patch and gum you can only buy them from very few places."
The British Medical Association wants packets of 10 cigarettes banned from tobacco-vending machines, saying they encourage underage smokers.
Other suggestions include a 15 certificate for any film featuring characters who light up, which would exclude viewers under the age of 15, even with parental guidance. Filmmakers would no doubt object to this, as it would limit their potential audience.
There is also talk of smoking "exclusion zones" around entrances to buildings and other outdoor areas, such as stadiums and bus shelters. Such zones are already in existence in parts of the United States and Canada.
Both Ash and Cancer Research UK have stopped short of backing such a move, saying it would only work if the health benefits could be proved and if it had widespread public support.
Both support the current government position of assessing how the smoking ban goes before deciding whether further powers - already contained in current legislation - are needed.
"Once people get used to the smoking ban, smoking in a crowded place will be increasingly regarded as antisocial," Ms Sandford says. "I think it will work quite well without legislation - we hope it will."
But for many smokers and pro-choice campaigners, any prospect of more restrictions represents an assault on freedoms.
Artist and passionate smoker David Hockney has been an ardent critic of the looming ban, arguing it is a blow to bohemia and down to individual choice whether to smoke or not.
"I might point out Turner smoked. Monet smoked and he died at 86. Picasso and Matisse smoked and lived to a ripe old age. They didn't have dreary people telling them what to do," he said on a recent visit to Tate Britain in London.
His views are backed by Simon Clark, director of pro-smoking group Forest, who predicts that the anti lobby will continue its campaign because it is "pushing on an open door".
In reality the measures will not stop smokers because "we are not living in a smoke-free utopian world", he says, and predicts that health campaigners will move on to alcohol after seeing the success of the anti-smoking lobby.
"Enough is enough. There comes a point where we cannot harass people in this way."
Nanny state
Others share his view. The ban has set a precedent and alcohol will become the new tobacco, says John McNamara, of the British Institute of Innkeeping, the professional body for licensees.
The government's £10m national alcohol strategy is currently reviewing happy hours and drink promotions. Alcoholic drinks will also carry new warning labels by the end of 2008.
"If the government is not careful it will throw the baby out with the bathwater by going too far and doing too much," says Mr McNamara.
Robert Feal-Martinez, licensee and leader of Freedom to Choose, which campaigns against the smoking ban, agrees that drinkers will be the next target. He fears that regulation of food may follow.
"What has it got to do with me whether these people want to put salt on their food? I didn't sign up to be everybody's guardian, but that is what we are being asked to be. The government is taking away people's ability to think and once this is lost, it is very difficult to get it back." |
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