Tobacco Packaging

Rehman Chishti Excerpts

Thursday 7th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Bob Blackman]

The hon. Lady comes on to a particular issue. The vast majority of smokers begin smoking in childhood. Two thirds of current smokers began under the age of 18 and we know that 200,000 young people under the age of 15 begin to smoke every year. When you add in the people that begin to smoke between 15 and 18, it becomes 300,000 smokers per year. Once someone is hooked, it is very difficult to give up. Most people say that after the direct sale of cigarettes to minors was made unlawful, many young people still continued to start smoking. Cancer Research stated in 2011 that more than 200,000 young people under the age of 16 had started to smoke. We must make sure that we reduce that number quite drastically.

[Rehman Chishti (Gillingham and Rainham) (Con)]

My hon. Friend talks about the accessibility of cigarettes for people who take up smoking. Gillingham has the largest amount of illegal cigarettes smoked in the country, which has an effect on health, the economy and crime. Does he agree that more needs to be done nationally to ensure that we stop these illegal cigarettes coming in to our country?

[Bob Blackman]

I agree completely. That demonstrates the failure of the tobacco industry to stop the illicit trade, even under the current advertising arrangements for packaging.