Dr. Helen McAvoy:

Yes, people are adults at the age of 18. I would not refute that but if tobacco came before this committee now as a new product, there is no way any government would allow it to be put on the market for sale. It is because we are in that space and have an historic legacy that this product has been around.

If tobacco came to the regulatory bodies now and somebody said he or she wanted to market this product which will seriously harm one in two users, is highly addictive and is very difficult to quit without significant support, would the Government allow it to go on sale? I do not believe it would.