The fight goes on

It appears I may have been premature with my previous post.

At the time of writing (early yesterday morning) I was convinced that having included the generational smoking ban on its list of ‘achievements’ in a social media post, the Government was unlikely to allow the Tobacco and Vapes Bill to die.

The PM even claimed to have ensured a smoke free generation in the speech he gave in the rain outside Number Ten on Wednesday afternoon.

My assumption, shared by others, was that the Bill would be rushed through as part of the wash up process before Parliament is dissolved on May 30.

Instead, shortly after noon yesterday, reports suggested that Rishi’s flagship bill was, ironically, one of several victims of his sudden and unexpected announcement of a general election on July 4.

Sure enough, when the leader of the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, announced the bills that would become law before the election, the Tobacco and Vapes Bill was noticeable by its absence.

Within minutes it was being reported, by the BBC, that ‘Rishi Sunak's smoking ban bill [was] set to be shelved due to election’.

The FT went further - ‘Rishi Sunak’s flagship smoking ban will not become law before the general election, the Commons leader Penny Mordaunt has confirmed’.

Confirmed? Not quite.

On Radio 4 the World At One said the Bill was “not shelved yet” and negotiations (with opposition parties) were “ongoing”, while on Times Radio Sir Peter Riddell, the former director of the Institute for Government, said that while it was his “hunch” that the Bill would be dropped, he could be proved wrong.

Subsequent reports also hedged their bets. According to the Press Association:

The future of Rishi Sunak’s flagship Bill banning young people from ever being able to smoke tobacco legally is in doubt after it was not mentioned among the final business in the House of Commons ahead of the General Election.

Supporters of the legislation, meanwhile, were given renewed hope when the Guardian (who else?) claimed:

Ministers could yet resuscitate the bill at the last minute with an emergency statement before Friday afternoon but otherwise it will be up to the next government to re-introduce the smoking ban in a fresh bill.

However, I’ve just been told by a good source that the Bill is definitely dead, which is welcome news.

The incoming Labour government will no doubt resuscitate the generational ban but it would be nice to think that what’s left of the Tory party in the Commons will, under a new leader, oppose the policy.

Either way, the fight goes on.

Update: UK's Sunak confirms anti-smoking plan will not become law before election (Reuters)

All washed up

“Events, dear boy, events.”

That was Harold Macmillan’s famous reply when asked what was the greatest challenge he faced as a statesman.

The same is arguably true for lobbyists.

On Tuesday Forest hosted a lunch at Boisdale to bring together opponents of the generational smoking ban. Although the odds seem stacked against us, we wanted to go down fighting.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill was progressing through Parliament but having gone to the Committee stage it still had to go through the Report stage, and then the third reading in the House of Commons when we were hoping more Tory MPs would oppose the ban.

After that the Bill had to go through a similar process in the House of Lords, before returning to the Commons for the final vote.

That, we estimated, could take several weeks and there was at least the possibility of further debate with more MPs speaking out against the Bill, as Sir Philip Davies did this week.

Instead, the announcement yesterday of a general election on July 4 is almost certainly not good news for anyone opposed to the Tobacco and Vapes Bill.

Hopes that it might fall through lack of time before Parliament is dissolved next week (May 30) were quickly dashed.

This is because we now enter a period known as ‘wash up’ when unfinished business, like the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, is rushed through before dissolution.

As the Telegraph reports here:

Wash-up involves deals taking place between party whips about which Bills are nodded through and the legislation that will be dropped …

With the agreement of both major political parties, legislation that could be introduced prior to the election includes the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which would increase the smoking age by one year every year as well as banning disposable vapes.

Conceivably, therefore, the Tobacco and Vapes Bill could become law without another shot being fired by opponents of the Bill.

Meanwhile, the Government last night issued a list of its alleged ‘achievements’ and there, at the bottom, it read, ‘Ensured the next generation grows up smoke free’.

Does that sound like a Government that is about to let the Tobacco and Vapes Bill fall?

What it clearly suggests is that there will be a back room deal with Labour to fast track the Bill without further scrutiny or debate before the dissolution next week.

It’s an extraordinary situation and the only thing that might derail it is if Labour was to unexpectedly refuse to support the (Tory) Bill and reintroduce it as a Labour Bill (and therefore take the ‘credit’) when they are in government after the election.

But that’s probably grasping at straws, and who’s to say a Labour tobacco control bill wouldn’t be even worse?

As I said in my introductory comments at Boisdale on Tuesday, “You couldn’t make it up”.

See: Food for thought (Tobacco Reporter)

Update: According to the BBC (12:18):

Rishi Sunak’s big plan to create a smoke-free generation seems to have been ditched but is likely to become a Tory manifesto pledge.

The legislation has not gone far enough in its journey through Parliament to make it through by tomorrow evening, when MPs and Lords pack up for the election.

Bills making the cut are the Digital Markets Bill, Post Office Offences Bill, Media Bill and the Victims and Prisoners Bill, which includes the compensation scheme for victims of the infected blood scandal. Details are still being thrashed out on that.

This is all to be confirmed by Commons leader Penny Mordaunt at around 13:00 BST.

Fingers crossed.

Fighting talk

Thanks to everyone who attended yesterday’s Beat the Ban lunch at Boisdale of Belgravia.

Sixty guests - including MPs, parliamentary researchers, broadcasters, journalists, and friends of Forest - joined us for drinks on the covered terrace, lunch in the main restaurant, and further (post-lunch) drinks on the terrace.

I left with the last guests shortly after 7.00pm although it could have been later because I'd rather lost track of time by then.

The aim of the event was to highlight the strength and breadth of opposition to the Government’s Tobacco and Vapes Bill so there were representatives from industry, the retail trade, and several think tanks and pressure groups including the Institute of Economic Affairs, Adam Smith Institute, TaxPayers Alliance, and the Freedom Association.

Principal speakers were Mark Littlewood (above), former director-general of the IEA, now director of Popular Conservatism (PopCon), and his former colleague Reem Ibrahim, communications officer at the IEA.

We also invited contributions from the floor and heard from Tatiana Camarcho, secretary-general of the International Tobacco Products Advisory Council (ITPAC); Olivia Lever, director, Blue Beyond; retailer Paul Cheema; and writer and journalist Alexander Larman.

One person who couldn’t make it was Sir Philip Davies MP who was due to speak but in his absence sent this message:

This legislation is utterly absurd.  Not only is it illiberal, and a triumph for the nanny state - treating adults as children - it is also completely unenforceable.

In years to come are we really expecting shops to ask 51-year-olds for ID to ensure they are not 50? Are trading standards going to send in 48-year-olds to see if a rogue shop sells them a packet of fags despite them being three years below the new age limit?

I look forward to voting against this nonsensical and embarrassing Bill at third reading.

Sadly my co-host Ranald Macdonald, MD of Boisdale, was also unable to join us but he too sent a message that I read out:

Wild horses could not drag me away from the magnificent annual Forest lunch which I adore. Sadly, though, illness can and I am somewhat under the weather but in very good heart thinking of you all having a wonderful celebratory and very greedy lunch. I am so jealous. I wish I could be with you all.  

For what it is worth I see the vital role of Forest now as being more keenly needed than ever. We are still negotiating the terms of the always inevitable divorce. I maintain that tobacco products, like alcohol or drugs, are not all the same. In Britain gin was made illegal and beer drinking encouraged by the state. Think for a moment of Hogarth’s compelling illustrations of Gin Lane and Beer Street. Marijuana will soon be legal and cocaine will not.

There are elements of freedom to be maintained and fought for across all tobacco products, but for me the focus is the beleaguered cigar smoker. You can’t smoke a cigar in five minutes. They are less addictive, not inhaled, and are overall a significantly lower health risk. There are also ecological ramifications. Cigar production employs millions in the third world.

Here’s to you all and have a wonderful day, and may the Forest be with you.    

Many thanks to our speakers, my assistants Jacqui and Amelia, and the staff at Boisdale who could not have been more helpful and even agreed to wear t-shirts bearing the slogan ‘Freedom Up In Smoke’.

Now that’s what I call dedication!

PS. I’ll post my own speech tomorrow. Meanwhile click on this link to see more photos of the event.

Update: The PM’s announcement of a general election on July 4 is almost certainly not good news for those of us opposed to the Tobacco and Vapes Bill because we now enter a period known as ‘wash up’ when unfinished business is rushed through before the dissolution of Parliament on May 30.

During wash up further scrutiny and debate is abandoned in favour of back room deals and with Opposition support Bills can pass within days rather than weeks or months.

Conceivably, therefore, the Tobacco and Vapes Bill could pass by the end of next week without another shot being fired by opponents of the Bill.

For further information see ‘Wash-up: What Happens to Bills before Parliament is Dissolved’.

Photos: Stuart Mitchell

Beat the Ban - a Prohibition lunch

As part of our ongoing campaign against the generational smoking ban, Forest is hosting a further event in London today.

Featuring several guest speakers, Beat The Ban: Fight For Choice - A Prohibition Lunch will highlight the wide range of opposition to the Tobacco and Vapes Bill that is currently progressing through Parliament.

Venue is Boisdale of Belgravia where we have exclusive use of the terrace and restaurant from noon to 4.00pm. 

Although the second reading of the Bill – which will ban the sale of tobacco to all future generations of adults – was passed (with Labour support) by a large majority of MPs, there was significant opposition from Conservative MPs (57 voted against and a further 106 didn’t vote so their votes are arguably still up for grabs).

The third reading of the Bill is expected within weeks - following the committee and report stages - so there is still time to influence MPs (and peers) to vote against legislation that will prohibit not only the sale of cigarettes to future generations of adults but other tobacco products including cigars, cigarillos, loose leaf tobacco, heated tobacco, and even rolling paper.

The lunch follows two previous campaign events - the first at Old Queen Street Cafe in Westminster in November, the second at the House of Commons in February.

Guests include MPs, journalists, parliamentary researchers, retailers, and representatives of several Westminster think tanks.

The event is fully booked with 70 confirmed guests. Full report (and photos) to follow.

We thought it was all over … it is now

I make no apologies for writing about women’s football again, if only as an epilogue to a couple of recent posts.

Three weeks ago, as I explained here, I was one of almost 40,000 spectators at Stamford Bridge who watched the second leg of the Women’s Champions League match between Chelsea and Barcelona.

Chelsea were not at their best and lost 2-0 (2-1 on aggregate) which was disappointing but not unexpected. Barcelona, after all, have been the best women’s team in the world for several years.

A few days later Chelsea - the defending champions who had won the Women’s Super League four years running - lost again in a chaotic match won 4-3 by Liverpool.

This prompted long-serving manager Emma Hayes to effectively concede the title to Manchester City who were six points ahead of Chelsea with a significantly better goal difference, albeit Chelsea had played one game less and had three games to play compared to City’s two.

Fast forward to the following weekend and in the 88th minute Manchester City were 1-0 up against Arsenal, Chelsea’s fiercest rivals, and on course to be nine points clear of Chelsea who were playing relegated Bristol City later in the day.

I watched the City-Arsenal game on TV and although Arsenal enjoyed a better second half few would predicted what happened next. The visitors scored twice in the last few minutes to win the match 2-1.

Buoyed by that result, Chelsea then beat Bristol City 8-0, overturning the goal difference with Man City in a feverish atmosphere at Kingsmeadow, the team’s home ground in Kingston-upon-Thames.

Addressing the crowd after the match - her final home game before leaving the club to become head coach of the United States’ women’s football team - Hayes rowed back on her previous comment.

Now she told supporters:

“Let me be clear. It’s not fucking over yet. There is no time for sentimentality. All work drinks have been cancelled. There is a title to be won.”

Last Wednesday a 1-0 win against Tottenham brought her team level on points with City, with Chelsea now two goals better off.

And so to yesterday, the final day of the WSL season. City were at Aston Villa, while Chelsea were playing Man United at Old Trafford in front of almost 30,000.

Chelsea had arguably the more difficult match, having lost 2-1 to United in the Women’s FA Cup semi-final only last month.

United were also playing on the back of winning the FA Cup (4-0 against Tottenham) at Wembley last Saturday.

If you don’t know, Man City beat Villa 2-1. Chelsea, however, went one better. Actually, make that six better.

A goal up after two minutes, two up after eight, and four up at half-time, the final score was 6-0.

Yes, United’s defending was comically dreadful at times, but in the first half - before she went off early in the second - there was a truly stupendous performance by the Colombian forward Mayra Ramírez.

Since arriving at the club in January following a long-term injury to Chelsea’s star player, the Australian captain Sam Kerr, Ramírez’s appearances have been limited by a series of niggling injuries, most recently a hamstring injury that had kept her out since April 14.

Sadly, that included the second leg of the Women’s Champions League match against Barcelona. Yesterday was her first game back and for 45 minutes, until she succumbed to cramp, she was sensational.

Chelsea, then, are the WSL champions for the fifth year running. Two weeks ago we thought it was all over … it is now.

My hospital stories

Talking of hospitals (see previous post), I’ve been quite lucky, I think.

Although I’ve had a number of hospital appointments in recent years - mostly for scans (MRI, CT, ultrasound) - that’s more to do with ageing than anything serious.

I’ve not required a hospital bed nor have I been kept in for more than a few hours.

The last time I needed a bed was in 2008 when I was taken to St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington in an ambulance for what turned out to be a gall stone. But even then I discharged myself after five hours.

The longest I’ve ever been in hospital was the ten days I spent in Dundee Royal Infirmary in 1971. I was twelve years old and was rushed to hospital with acute appendicitis.

I didn’t know it was appendicitis or acute until I got to hospital, but I was in severe pain and they operated within hours of my arrival.

(Had they not removed my appendix, I’m told it would have burst, which is quite serious.)

The operation was notable (for me) because I ‘woke up’ from the general anaesthetic while they were still stitching me up, but I was sufficiently sedated that I couldn’t move or speak so I just had to grin and bear it, although I could feel the needle going in and out.

I’ve read that it’s very rare but does happen and I remember it to this day, although it wasn’t as bad as it sounds.

However, the reason I ended up in hospital for ten days was because the wound got badly infected so they had to keep me in while they treated it.

I’ll spare you the gory details but reopening the wound to relieve the pressure caused by the infection was even more painful than the acute appendicitis. (You’ve never seen so many swabs!)

Those ten days in hospital were nevertheless an interesting experience.

I was in a children’s ward and in the bed next to me was a boy - eight-years-old, perhaps - who had spina bifida but was the nicest, most cheerful person you could wish to meet.

I may be wrong, but in those days children with spina bifida were not expected to live very long.

Perhaps he didn’t know this, but there was no self pity, or grumbling, and I sometimes think back and wonder what happened to him.

Another thing I remember is that, after ten days, it was a bit of a wrench to go home (and I was very happy at home!).

Despite the terrible food, and the significant incentive of going home to my mother's cooking, I think I got institutionalised very quickly to the rhythm of the hospital day - from the (very) early breakfasts to lights out at 8.00pm or whenever it was – and the camaraderie of the children's ward.

Anyway, I was off school for SIX WEEKS which was great at the time but, although my teachers sent me homework, the break did me no favours when it came to the end of year exams.

A few years earlier, when I was six or seven, I remember having a painful sty removed from one eye. That required a visit to a hospital in Staines, I think.

Afterwards I wore an eye patch for a week but it was a white one. In my view (no pun intended), black pirate style eye patches should be mandatory for children and adults.

Then, when I was ten (and shortly after we moved to Scotland), I tripped jumping over a low wall at school and broke a bone in my hand, and that led to my first visit to Dundee Royal Infirmary.

Sitting in his office after my fall, the headmaster (Mr Russell), assured me I hadn’t broken my hand but sent me home anyway.

When I returned to school the next day, hand, wrist, and arm in a rigid plaster cast, he said: “Ah, I thought so.”

Apart from that, I’ve been lucky with fractures or worse.

Age is now creeping up on me so hospital visits may become more common both for me and my contemporaries.

Then again, it will be something to write about so if I do end up in hospital for any length of time I'll be sure to blog about it!

Going private

I had my first experience of a private hospital this week.

Nothing serious. I was referred there by my GP because the ‘issue’ I have is considered cosmetic and not something the NHS wishes to spend public money on, which is fair enough.

Anyway, I arrived in good time - 45 minutes before my appointment - but there was a problem. Although it was a modern building, there were simply not enough parking spaces.

Round and round I went, looking for somewhere to park, without success. And I wasn’t alone.

A woman in a Range-Rover was also looking for a parking space. She followed me, then I followed her. Eventually, as we were both turning, we caught one another’s eye and shrugged, then laughed.

Others had double-parked, blocking cars in. I didn’t want to do that but parking on the road outside the hospital was prohibited and the nearest residential roads - we were in a leafy, expensive part of town - were a quarter of a mile away and designated as ‘private’ and ‘resident parking only’.

The clock was ticking and I was beginning to get stressed so I drove back to the hospital and parked in one of four bays reserved for disabled drivers directly outside the entrance. (Well, I have been suffering from gout.)

Fortunately, when I explained the situation at reception, they were perfectly all right with it.

“That’s fine,” said the receptionist, smiling and pointing me to a device that asked me to register my registration number.

This being my first time there, I then had to fill in some forms and give them my credit card details. Payment, they said, could be made online when I got home - they would send me an invoice.

I was then asked to sit in the waiting area (soft, soothing muzak played in the background) until I was called for my 30-minute appointment which was scheduled for 3.00pm.

And here’s the thing. At three o’clock prompt (or it may have been two minutes’ past), the consultant came out, called my name, and in I went.

That never (or very rarely) happens with the NHS.

I have arrived at an NHS hospital for an 11.00pm appointment (a scan, for example) and had to wait one or two hours.

Or I’ve gone to my local GP for a 9.00am appointment and been seen at 9.20, the timetable already behind schedule.

(Ten-minute appointments are ridiculously short, btw. They really need to be 15 or 20 minutes, to allow the doctor to do the paperwork as well as see the patient, but I guess that would mean fewer people being seen and waiting lists being even longer.)

Anyway, my first taste of a private hospital was brief but, car parking aside, extremely efficient.

So too was the speed with which the invoice arrived, quickly followed by a quote for the relevant operation/procedure.

“That’s the cost of a holiday!” my wife gasped when she saw it, but I’m only following my GP’s advice.

“I’d have it done,” he told me a few months ago, having undergone a similar albeit smaller procedure himself.

Then again, as he also told me, he got “mate’s rates”.

Lucky man!

Wanted - spokesman for Forest in Ireland

The Irish Government this week confirmed that it intends to raise the age of sale of tobacco from 18 to 21.

On Monday, ahead of the announcement, I appeared on RTE Radio 1 and The Tonight Show (Virgin Media). I also gave some soundbites to Newstalk for use on their news bulletins.

The following day (Tuesday) I was interviewed by two local radio stations, Live 95 in Limerick, and LMFM which is based in Drogheda, County Louth, north of Dublin.

And yesterday I was on the daily Opinion Line (phone-in) on Cork’s 96FM.

The reason I did those interviews is because we have yet to find someone to replace John Mallon who was our spokesman in Ireland from 2010 until his very sad death in December following a long battle with ill health.

No-one is irreplaceable but John was (almost) perfect for the role, not least because he genuinely believed in and supported smokers’ rights, even after he quit smoking and switched to vapes.

He also came without any political baggage or ‘history’, so in that sense he was a blank canvas.

Anyway, he was clearly liked by many of the presenters on whose shows he often appeared, and when I notified one of John’s death, I received this reply:

‘I’m so sorry to hear that devastating news. I have spoken to John many times over the years and he was a wonderful man and passionate in his field.’

On Tuesday I received a text from a radio producer. ‘Where’s John?’, it asked, and after I explained the situation the reaction was one of genuine regret.

People may not have agreed with him on the subject of smoking, but John was an amiable man and most of the people he met or talked to seemed to like him.

Also, thanks to his annual media tours when he would travel to radio stations around the country to be interviewed in person, he was a familiar face to many broadcasters.

This week John’s absence has been felt even more keenly, not least by me, but in stepping in to his shoes - temporarily - it is actually a reminder of the days before we recruited John to be Forest’s spokesman in Ireland.

Before and after the introduction of the smoking ban in March 2004 I did quite a few interviews on Irish radio and, very occasionally, on TV too.

It’s far better though to have an Irish voice representing Forest in Ireland, which is why we are currently advertising for John’s successor.

Full details here.

Fingers crossed, I shall be interviewing candidates in Dublin next month so if you know someone who might be interested in the role, do send them the link.

Nine years ago we placed a similar ad in the hope of recruiting someone to assist John. We received quite a few applications and ended up interviewing four or five candidates.

Unfortunately the person we gave the job to left ‘by mutual agreement’ after two months, but that’s another story.

PS. PJ Coogan, host of the Opinion Line on Cork’s 96FM, paid a very nice tribute to John on air yesterday, describing him as very “affable”.

As a resident of Cork, born and bred, John appeared many times on the Opinion Line so it was nice of PJ to say something.

Below: Me being interviewed at the RTE studios in Dublin many years ago