Ms Niamh Kelly:

On Deputy Fitzpatrick's question on the reduction in prevalence, initial findings from Australia are positive, but they are still fairly new. However, something that points to a reduction in prevalence is the tobacco industry's assertion of the loss in revenue that standardised packaging will cause. If the industry did not believe this was going to cut the amount of people smoking, the figures would be much lower.

Deputy Catherine Byrne spoke about the size of the picture. In Australia the health warning covers 75% to 90% of the packet. We are in favour of having the health warnings as large as possible, provided it allows for the quit line number to be carried also.

Deputy Catherine Byrne asked what we were doing about the lack of understanding of health risks. Smoking, as Deputy Fitzpatrick mentioned, is the most common and worst trigger for asthma symptoms. Smoking is part of everything. Smoking cessation is mentioned in our clinic advice. We have clinics to which people go throughout the country and it is included in all of our health information on asthma. Every piece of information we give includes a smoking cessation message.

Further to this, smoking cessation is first on the list of priorities in the HSE's national asthma programme as a measure to help people with asthma. Deputy Byrne spoke about educating young people and Ms Cosgrove will speak about this.