Burning Desire revealed Sir Cyril Chantler's true colours

Friday, June 6, 2014 at 9:30
Simon Clark

The second part of Peter Taylor's BBC documentary Burning Desire: The Seduction of Smoking was notable for a number of reasons.

One, the bizarre jumping from one to another, quite different, issue. The first part, broadcast last week, may have been biased but at least there was a clear narrative.

Last night's programme was all over the place. Literally. (If you're wondering who paid for Taylor's globetrotting it was you and me, courtesy of the licence fee.)

So we had a long opening section about e-cigarettes followed by a sequence about smoking in Timor where there are few restrictions on tobacco use.

I was still getting my head around that particular link when Taylor was transported to Argentina where he told the locals they shouldn't smoke in bars because it wasn't allowed.

After that he turned up in Uruguay, Australia, Germany and, finally, Ireland where he interviewed the passionate anti-smoking minister for health James Reilly.

Two, almost 90 minutes into a two-hour documentary we finally heard from an adult who enjoyed smoking. When you consider that globally two billion people smoke (ten million in the UK alone), that was some achievement.

Needless to say that person lived in Timor. He knows no better, you could almost hear the presenter think.

Three, and this is my abiding memory of the programme, was the contribution of Sir Cyril Chantler, author of the infamous Chantler Review on standardised packaging of tobacco.

Chantler's comments were crucial because by commenting on smoking and e-cigarette advertising it was he who underpinned the message of this flawed programme.

First, 13 minutes in, Taylor and Chantler rebutted BAT's claim that nicotine is no more harmful than a cup of coffee.

Taylor: But unlike coffee, which is only mildly addictive, nicotine can be extremely addictive. Professor Sir Cyril Chantler headed a government (sic) inquiry into cigarette packaging. He's one of the country's leading paediatricians and has studied and experienced the effect of nicotine on smokers.

Chantler: It is very addictive and it is addictive both psychologically, but it is also addictive biologically and we now understand far better than we did before the effect, the mechanisms, on the brain receptors that lead to that level of addiction. I know personally it's very difficult to give up.

Taylor: You were a smoker?

Chantler: I was.

Taylor: How long did you smoke for?

Chantler: More than 30 years.

Taylor: "How did a doctor …

Chantler: Indeed.

Taylor: … and a paediatrician …

Chantler: Indeed.

Taylor: … become a lifelong (sic) smoker and smoke for 30 years?

Chantler: Well, if knew now, if I knew then what I know now I wouldn't have started.

Commenting on e-cigarette marketing (16 minutes):

Chantler: I'm personally worried about the advertising of them because it might cause confusion in young people's minds about the dangers of cigarette smoking.

(Plain packs for e-cigarettes, anyone?)

Finally, following a section about 'Be Marlboro', Philip Morris' "controversial new campaign that pushes advertising restrictions to the limit" (Taylor's words), Chantler commented (40 minutes):

I can't see how you can quarantine 15 to 18 year-olds or younger children. I also don't see how if you are marketing for the appeal of your particular brand how that can not have an effect on the consumption of tobacco and there is a lot of evidence from various cases in the past that shows a direct link between advertising and young people starting to smoke.

Reading those comments can anyone really believe Chantler was ever open-minded about plain packaging prior to conducting his "independent" review?

Personally I think that having conducted and published his review Chantler should retire gracefully to the sidelines.

Instead he seemed to enjoy being the focus of Taylor's attention and was relaxed and smiling. (I'd be relaxed too if I was lobbed questions without fear of cross-examination.)

As well as mostly ignoring smokers who enjoy the habit or are not addicted, Burning Desire also ignored another important group – non-smokers like me.

There are hundreds of millions of us worldwide who have grown up surrounded by tobacco advertising and sponsorship (before it was banned) and none of us has never become a smoker.

Millions of people aged 50+ will have worked in an office or socialised in a pub with people smoking around us and still we didn't take up the habit.

People can think and act for themselves, Mr Taylor, but that message didn't fit your programme, did it?

Article originally appeared on Simon Clark (http://taking-liberties.squarespace.com/).