The Directors of Public and Population Health for Cheshire and Merseyside are welcoming the reintroduction of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, laid before Parliament today (5 November) after a delay of several months.
They say it is a vital step towards saving lives – and speed is essential to stop the ever-increasing number of avoidable cancers and premature death.
Figures from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) show that in Cheshire and Merseyside there are 20,562 hospital admissions and 3,435 premature deaths caused by smoking, every year.
Lead Director of Public Health for All Together Smokefree Cheshire and Merseyside, and local Director of Public Health for Knowsley, Dr Sarah McNulty said:
“We need this legislation urgently, to protect our children and to prevent the next generation from ever having to go through the pain of preventable ill health and early death caused by smoking.”
“We welcome the Government’s commitment to returning this historic Bill to Parliament, so that our country can lead the world in tobacco legislation and in taking real action to protect people from the devastating impact of smoking.”
“We are calling on all MPs in Cheshire and Merseyside to support our communities by backing the Bill and ensuring future generations can live longer and healthier lives – especially those in deprived areas who are most affected by smoking.”
Two 18-year-olds from Kirkby explained why they are supporting the smokefree campaign.
Lee Shields and Liam Tyrer recently attended an event for the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health in the Houses of Parliament and today they welcomed the return of the Bill.
Liam said: “Smoking has a much bigger impact on society than people realise and the only way we can make a better society and environment, is if more people speak up on the dangers and impacts it can have.”
“More and more young people are taking up smoking and vaping and can be easily influenced by their surroundings, this can then lead to severe health complications as an adult. Something we are passionate about stopping – and this Bill will help.”
Liam and Lee have written to their MP Anneliese Midgley, urging her to support the Bill and secure a smokefree future for young people. They are hoping to meet her in the coming weeks.
The Bill, which completed Committee Stage in the last parliament, will introduce the phased-out sale of tobacco for the next generation and give the Government further powers to regulate vapes.
All the Directors of Public and Population Health for Cheshire and Merseyside have set out a bold ambition to end smoking for everyone, with the intention of making the sub-region smokefree by 2030.
Professor Ian Ashworth, Director of Population Health for NHS Cheshire and Merseyside, said:
“This legislation is a landmark in public health that future generations will thank us for; action to end the damage and deaths caused by smoking is long overdue and we know it has the support of most of the population.”
“Smoking is the silent killer that hides in plain sight that has caused more deaths than obesity, alcohol, road traffic accidents, illegal drugs and HIV combined. It hits people in poor communities the hardest.”
“I am delighted the Government has brought the Bill back to Parliament and I urge MPs in our region and nationally, to give it their full support.”
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will create the first ever smokefree generation by:
- making it an offence to sell tobacco products to those born on or after 1 January 2009, thereby phasing out the sale of tobacco products while not stopping anyone who currently legally smokes from being able to do so. This will mean anyone who turns 15 or younger in 2024 will never legally be sold tobacco products
- amending existing legislation to make it an offence for anyone over 18 to purchase tobacco products on behalf of those born on or after the 1 January 2009 (proxy purchasing)
- supporting the enforcement of the new measures by requiring retailers to update the current age of sale notices (or warning notices), so that any retailer that sells tobacco will need to state clearly that ‘It is illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009.
Smoking is still the number one preventable cause of death, disability and ill health. Introducing a smokefree generation could avoid up to 470,000 cases of strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and other lung diseases by 2100 in England, greatly reducing the burden on the NHS.
In Cheshire and Merseyside, 10.4 per cent of adults over 18 now regularly smoke, a reduction of 1.3 per cent since 2022 and below the national average of 11.6 per cent.
Dr Sarah McNulty summarised:
“This downward trend is testament to the hard work of our communities and stop smoking services, but there is still more to be done. Smoking remains the biggest cause of preventable ill health and premature death in the sub-region and costs the local economy around £1.9bn per year.”
