‘Tobacco Free Ireland’ welcomed by Irish Cancer Society

The Irish Cancer Society has welcomed the publication of Tobacco Free Ireland by Minister James Reilly today (Thursday, October 3rd), but reminds people that we need to be mindful of obstacles the tobacco industry will use to try and block, delay and derail efforts to create a healthier, more productive society.

The Tobacco Free Ireland document outlines the Government’s plans to introduce legislation and initiatives that will discourage young people from starting to smoke, leading to a generation of young people who don’t smoke, by 2025.

Speaking at the launch of the policy document, Mr John McCormack, Chief Executive Officer of the Irish Cancer Society, warned that the tobacco industry would be working tirelessly to undermine the Minister’s ambitions: "The tools identified in Tobacco Free Ireland to deal with the constant marketing assault on children and teens are very comprehensive. However, we need to be mindful of obstacles the tobacco industry will use to try and block, delay and derail any effort to create a healthier, more productive society."

The Irish Cancer Society particularly welcomed the specific reference to the Department’s ‘targeted approaches’ to health inequalities that are caused by smoking. In its recently published strategic plan, Towards a Future Without Cancer, the Society drew attention to the fact that smoking is the greatest contributor to health inequalities between the richest and poorest sections of society.

The Irish Cancer Society said that health inequalities are extremely relevant to the issue of women smoking because women are concentrated in the lower income brackets. This means that in more unequal societies, women are more likely to smoke, have chronic illness and die earlier.

"We are facing a crisis of female smoking in Ireland," said Mr McCormack. "We know that women in disadvantaged communities are over twice as likely to smoke as better-off women and that while they want to quit smoking just as much as the rest of the population, they often find it more difficult because of the social conditions that affect their lives. The Irish Cancer Society is looking forward to seeing what targeted approaches the Minister has in mind to deal with this complex issue."

Although broadly welcoming the content of Tobacco Free Ireland, the Irish Cancer Society said that there needs to be strong political will across all Government departments to make the Minister’s ambitions a reality. Mr McCormack also warned that although public finances are limited, without any ‘new money’ to adequately resource this important document, there is a danger it could become diluted. He called on the Minister for Health to seek an increased health budget that could support the ambitious strategy.

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Chloe Conlon (16), Tracey Turner (16), Arlene Dowling (17) from the Newbridge X-HALE group, pictured with Minister James Reilly TD today (Thursday). Newbridge Youth Project is a project of Kildare Youth Services. The group have been involved in X-HALE since 2011 and have focused on raising awareness amongst young people in Newbridge about the dangers of smoking. The girls spoke to Minister Reilly at the launch of Tobacco Free Ireland, told them about their project and communicated what an important issue smoking is for them