APPG on smoking and tax
Sunday, October 11, 2015 at 10:53 Up early this morning.
I was asked to appear on BBC Breakfast at 6.10am so I had to get up at 5.00 and drive to the BBC studio in Cambridge.
They softened the pill by explaining that the earlier I could appear the greater the chance of a soundbite being used in subsequent news bulletins.
The interview was in response to this story – Tobacco tax increase urged by parliamentary group (BBC News).
I described the demand for a increase of inflation plus five percent as "economic madness" and went on to point out that the only Chancellor who has ever introduced such an increase was Gordon Brown who jumped off that particular 'escalator' when he discovered the Treasury was losing £3 billion to the illicit market every year.
When I was asked what else the government could do to reduce smoking, if not raise taxes, I pointed out that the most successful smoking cessation of recent years has been electronic cigarettes, a free market invention and nothing to do with government.
The interview ended very quickly after that!
Anyway, here is Forest's full response:
Smokers' group urges government to ignore demands for tobacco tax increase
Campaigners say the Chancellor should reject calls by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health to increase tobacco taxes to fund a reduction in smoking prevalence.
Simon Clark, director of the smokers' group Forest, said: "Experience tells us that increasing tobacco taxation doesn't generate more revenue for government overall.
"Instead it fuels the black market by encouraging criminal gangs to smuggle huge quantities of illicit tobacco, including counterfeit cigarettes, into the UK.
"It also encourages many consumers to purchase their tobacco, quite legitimately, in other European countries where the price is substantially cheaper than it is here.
"Far from increasing revenue to invest in more smoking cessation projects, increasing tobacco taxes could cost the Treasury billions of pounds it can ill afford to lose.
"Legitimate retailers in the UK would also suffer from a loss of business that could prove extremely damaging for small convenience stores.
"We urge the Treasury to ignore these shrill, self-serving demands for more tax and more public money to coerce smokers to quit."
I should add that we've also been pointing out that the APPG on Smoking and Health is run by ASH, who also issued the news release calling for a large hike in tobacco tax.
They also want the Government to spend an additional £100 million per year on smoking prevention, an increase of 50 per cent on the current £200 million.
They couldn't be angling for an increase on the £200k per year they currently get from the taxpayer, could they?
ASH Scotland of course get £800k from the Scottish Government and goodness knows how much all those regional groups (Smokefree South West, Tobacco Free Futures, Fresh North East) hoover up.
I think we should be told.
Reader Comments (3)
The Treasury was losing £3 billion a year in taxes under Gordon Brown, surely closer to £5 billion a year now.
Can it really afford to lose more ?
The current figure is £2.1bn. An explanation for the lower amount is that the tobacco escalator is currently inflation plus 2% (not 5%).
You should also point out that any hike in duty causes an increase in public health expenditure.
More smoking illicit brands
More scowering cigarette bins
More going cold turkey
All the above will happen. More duty equates to less income and poorer public health. A backward step in my eyes.