James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)

Fine Gael is happy to support this legislation as it is in line with our public health policy and our drive to rationalise State agencies and organisations while removing as much administration as possible.

It is important the message goes out that the battle against tobacco addiction is far from over and remains a huge challenge to our health, education and wider social system. The Minister of State referred to the fact that 29% of people smoke, 2% more than before the introduction of the smoking ban. While I welcomed the ban at the time, more needs to be done to combat smoking. The tobacco companies aim their product at young people. They want to reach a state where one pack of 20 cigarettes will hook a young person. They do not mind if that person gives up tobacco in their 30s or 40s because they will have the next generation of young people to target then.

Tobacco is deadly. It causes lung, bowel and oesophagus cancers, cardiovascular diseases, strokes and heart attacks. This is a dreadful product. It has been historically available in our society, yet we know it does untold damage. Smoking causing 6,000 deaths per year as well as costing the health service billions.

The Office of Tobacco Control is hugely important so, in moving it to the HSE's aegis, we must ensure that it does not lose its identity or ethos. There are many excellent people working within that office who are committed to ridding our society of smoking and reducing its harmful effects. The problem is that every single cigarette causes harm. Most people feel dizzy and unwell after smoking their first cigarette, so it is extraordinary that so many take up the habit and then spend so long trying to quit. Members of my own family were smokers who died as a consequence of contracting cancer. It is a very difficult addiction to deal with. The best way of dealing with addiction is not to start.

The prevalence of smoking presents a huge challenge. We need to keep working on finding new ways to handle this problem. The Minister of State is right to say that it is not just a health problem, but also an educational, environmental and legal problem. We know that tobacco companies target young people. If somebody offered me a box with 20 white sticks in it, which I know can cause cancer, heart attacks and stroke, and wanted to charge me €7.50 for the pleasure, I would think it was silly to become engaged in such a transaction, yet people do; such is the subtlety of advertising and peer pressure. We must work harder to devise new methods to combat smoking, including more education and information to advise people, particularly the young, about the dangers involved.

Sometimes we over hype things and, as a consequence, younger people may say: "Ah, they are always telling us that everything we like is bad for us". We need to be clear therefore about those things that are truly damaging. Cigarettes, and tobacco generally, constitute one of those deadly products. If it were to come on the market today there is no question but that it would be banned.

The Irish Cancer Society does wonderful work in helping people to deal with cancer, as well as advising them on the causes of cancer. The society points out that tobacco kills more people in Ireland than road accidents, suicide, drugs, farm accidents and AIDS combined. It causes 30% of all cancers, including 95% of all lung cancers. In addition, smokers are three times more at risk of suffering heart attacks than non-smokers. Despite all our efforts and welcome initiatives, the rate of smoking in Ireland remains high, so we must continue to work hard on reducing tobacco consumption.

Despite the spirit of Yuletide goodwill, I must take the Minister of State to task on one measure in previous legislation. There are many ways of communicating, including the written or spoken word and action, which are all-important parts of the learning process. Legislation has already been passed to print pictorial warnings on cigarette packets in order to help smokers visualise tobacco-related illnesses. This has been proven to be a cost-effective public health measure, which I believe will reduce tobacco use in the long term. There is nothing like being reminded of what is happening to one's heart and lungs every time one reaches for a cigarette packet. Such pictures can remind smokers of the harm they are doing to themselves and others. Such a provision was included in the previous Public Health (Tobacco) (Amendment) Bill which was passed in the summer of 2009, yet here we are at the end of 2010 and it has not yet been introduced. In addition, there is no timeline for introducing it. The Minister of State has the support of the Opposition on this issue, but we cannot tolerate this interminable delay in following up on legislation which has already been passed by the House. The Minister of State should explain the delay. If there are obstacles to introducing such a measure they should be removed along with any red tape.

We should also address the question of quitting therapies. Once one starts smoking it is very hard to stop, yet many quitting products are only available in pharmacies, albeit over the counter. In the UK, smoke-quitting therapies are much more widely available, including in supermarkets. Quitting therapies should be as widely available as cigarettes are. Cigarette vendors should also sell quitting therapies. I hasten to add that therapies on their own will not do the trick because people also need medical help, which has been proven to bring about the best outcome. People might stay on such therapies a lot longer if it were easier and cheaper to purchase them in supermarkets and other retail outlets, than is currently the case. We need to help those who have started smoking to quit the habit. Many people do give up smoking successfully, so others who wish to do so should not give up trying to stop. Sadly, many medical conditions arise from smoking. People suffering from smoke-related illnesses should talk to their pharmacist and general practitioner when taking therapies to help them stop smoking.

The latest data from 2009 shows that 32% of retail outlets are willing to sell cigarettes to minors. Young people can get cigarettes from vending machines in 35% of licensed premises. I know of a rather intrepid five-year-old who used to go down to the shop to buy sweets. When he got the change he would nip into the pub and buy fags from the vending machine, so much greater supervision is required.

Cigarette smuggling is another issue of concern. However, just because we have a problem with smuggling as cigarettes become more expensive, I do not believe that we should not continue to increase the price of this product. We need to spend more money on fighting smuggling, thus ensuring that all cigarettes are sold legally. In addition, retail outlets should be increasingly controlled.

The Bill is welcome but I would add one caveat - we must ensure that the Office of Tobacco Control does not lose its identity or ethos.

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