Poll: Tackling smoking not a top priority

As I reported yesterday, a new poll has found that almost two thirds (64%) of adults in Britain say that when people are 18 and legally an adult they should be allowed to purchase cigarettes and other tobacco products.

In contrast, only a quarter (26%) said they should not be allowed to purchase tobacco products when they are legally an adult at 18, while 10% said 'don't know'.

In a second poll conducted by Yonder Consulting for Forest this month, 2,028 respondents were asked to prioritise a list of ten domestic issues.

The survey was carried out this week (29-30 January) and the results, just in, reveal that:

Improving the health service is the most important priority, followed by tackling crime, and tackling inflation.

Other top priorities are tackling illegal immigration, addressing care for the elderly, tackling climate change, tackling the housing shortage, and reforming and improving the education system.

Tackling smoking and tackling obesity were bottom of the list, as they always are whenever we've asked the public to prioritise a list of domestic issues.

(Tackling alcohol misuse is usually at the bottom of the list too but on this occasion there wasn't space to include it.)

I accept that governments can multi-task but it beggars belief that, at a time when so many issues need to be addressed at home and abroad, a Conservative prime minister has chosen to prioritise raising the age of sale of tobacco (and banning disposable vapes).

See also: The public has spoken but the PM isn’t listening

Comments

[Pat Nurse]

Our Government is too weak to tackle serious issues of grave concern to the public so virtue signals a false sense of being tough by picking on easy and vulnerable targets like smokers.

They will see how wrong they are and how much the public is fed up of being bullied at the next election.