Mr. Paul Gordon:

As the Deputy pointed out, in recent years we have certainly seen a proliferation in the sale of packs of 27, 28 and, in certain cases, 35, which makes up approximately 30% of sales so far. The worry is that when they are sold in those pack sizes, the cost per single cigarette is in fact lower than might be found for a pack of 20. That is a concern. We know that higher prices discourage people from taking up the habit and also encourage people to quit smoking. It is known, and the WHO has shown, that if the price of cigarettes in high-income countries is raised by 10%, there will be a subsequent drop in the smoking rate of 4%. That is certainly something we should look at. The Department has stated that there has not been a whole lot of evidence on it to date, but it suggests that the Department should take a look at that, examine what further evidence is available and do research into smoking habits around those larger packs.