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Reducing the Demand and Supply of Illicit
Tobacco and Underage Tobacco Sales across
Cheshire and Merseyside
Peter Astley MBE
Head of Public Protection
Warrington Borough Council
Effective tobacco control:
its more than smoking
cessation!
Regulatory Services:
have a key role to play in reducing
the supply of tobacco to young
people and illicit tobacco to all!
The case for tackling supply:
Underage access:
• Two-thirds of smokers start before the age of 18!
• Reducing access = reducing the chance of nicotine dependency!
Illicit tobacco:
• Undermines current tobacco control initiatives (e.g. reducing under-age access) and perpetuates health inequalities.
• Cheap price undermines quit attempts.
• Impacts on community cohesion.
63%
Agree: “illicit tobacco brings
crime into our communities”
87%
Agree: “illicit tobacco is a
danger to our children”
“14-15 year old smokers are
more than twice as likely as
their adult counterparts to
be often offered illicit
tobacco to buy” (NEMS 2011)
“1 in 7 young smokers have
gone to a private address,
or fag house, to buy illicit
cigarettes” (NEMS 2011)
Reducing supply in C&M, achievememts:
Underage access:
• Exponential impact in compliance work
Illicit tobacco:
• Exponential increase in enforcement work across the region at a local level.
• Developed ‘world first’ regional solution: The ‘North of England Tackling Illicit Tobacco for Better Health Programme’ is a multi-agency approach which has focussed on reducing demand and supply at the heart of the community.
Reducing supply: outcomes
• Underage access:
– Big rise in compliance, reduced supply to under-18’s
– Reduced prevalence?
Underage purchasing rates
0
5
10
15
20
25
2007 2009 2011
14-16 % Prevalence: North West Chesire & Merseyside
Reducing supply: outcomes
• Underage access:
– Big rise in compliance, reduced supply to under-18’s
– Reduced prevalence?
• Illicit tobacco:
– IT market shrinking in the area (volume change
estimated as 23% reduction, when those struggling
financially increased from 20 – 25%!).
– Raised awareness of illicit tobacco among consumers
and stakeholders – impacting on demand
– Improved partnerships, both formal and informal
which has impacted on IT strategies/actions locally
Illicit Tobacco Levels:
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
2000/1 2001/2 2002/3 2003/4 2004/5 2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2008/9 2009/10
Cigarettes HRT
tobacco supply reduction:
challenges
Public Protection 2012!
The future:
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
2009 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Under 18's prevalence
Impact of reducing
tobacco supply
Current impacts:
•Public Health budgets & lack of leadership?
•Reducing budgets = reducing underage sales
& illicit compliance work = increased availability.
•Economic climate.
•Developing markets.
•Border control changes.
?
