James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Public Health (Tobacco) (Amendment) Bill 2013 and to outline the background to the amendments being introduced. As a public health measure, Ireland has for many years set a mandatory level below which the price of cigarettes could not be lowered. For over 30 years an arrangement was in place between the Department of Health and Irish tobacco companies whereby a weighted average price was calculated for cigarettes based on sales volumes data and retail prices to year end each year. However, in 2010 the European Court of Justice ruled that by imposing minimum retail prices for cigarettes, Ireland had failed to fulfil its obligations under article 9(1) of Council Directive 95/59/EC. As a consequence of the court judgment, Ireland can no longer set a mandatory level below which cigarette prices cannot be lowered, as this would be restricting the freedom of industry to make effective use of competitive advantage. The Commission indicated that infringement proceedings would be initiated unless Ireland took steps to comply with the court's judgment.

As a result of this ruling, my Department informed the tobacco industry that the practice of setting floor prices for cigarettes each year would cease. In addition Ireland advised the Commission that new regulations would be introduced to remedy the infringement. Draft regulations were developed to remove the price setting provisions currently in our tobacco regulations. During this process, and after a considerable period of time, the Commission indicated that in addition to the new regulations the primary enabling tobacco legislation would also have to be amended to meet with the requirements of the court judgment. The purpose of amending the primary legislation would be to remove the legal basis for the fixing of a minimum price. In order to comply with the court judgment, therefore, new regulations were to be devised and the primary tobacco legislation was to be amended.

It is important to state that I have completed the first step in complying with the court's ruling.

Last December I signed regulations, the Tobacco Products (Control of Advertising, Sponsorship and Sales Promotion)(Amendment) Regulations 2012, which had the effect of removing the regulatory basis for the fixing of a minimum price. On examination of the tobacco legislation, it appeared that both the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2002 and the Tobacco Products (Control of Advertising, Sponsorship and Sales Promotion) Act 1978 required amendment to satisfy the court judgment. This Bill achieves this in that it removes the legal basis for the fixing of a minimum price. However, in amending the relevant sections of the Act it is important that I and future Ministers retain powers to introduce regulations relating to tobacco sales promotion activities. A provision in the Bill allows for the development of regulations in this regard. More specifically, it sets out some of the types of promotions to be included in these regulations such as prohibiting buy-three-for-two, happy hour promotions or buy-one-get-one-free offers. The issue of sales promotion activities falls outside of the European Court of Justice ruling because it does not relate to minimum or maximum pricing of tobacco and was not, therefore, a direct requirement of the European Commission.

Section 1 amends section 38 of the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2002 by removing any perceived price fixing provision. However, it retains the power to make regulations in respect of activities which are intended or are likely to promote the sale of tobacco products. Specifically, the new section 38(10) gives the Minister for Health the power to make these regulations.

The new section 38(10A) sets out some of the provisions which may be included in these regulations, namely, the prohibition of the promotion and sale of tobacco products at a reduced price or free of charge on the purchase of another tobacco product or other products or services. This covers the types of promotions mentioned - buy-three-for-two, happy hour promotions or buy-one-get-one-free offers. It also covers the prohibition of the promotion and sale of tobacco products at a reduced price or free of charge for a limited period of time on any day. This prohibits happy hour type promotions.

The new section 38(11) makes it an offence for someone to contravene the regulations made under section 38(10). In this context, it is important to state my Department, in consultation with the Health Service Executive, is continuously monitoring the ever evolving marketing tactics of the tobacco industry. As these evolve, so too must our legislative and policy framework.

I am sorry the young men and ladies from France have left the Visitors Gallery. It is important to remind ourselves that 700,000 Europeans, including 5,200 Irish citizens, die every year from tobacco related illnesses. It must be remembered that the tobacco companies must replace these customers with new ones. Whom do they go after? They go after our children. Why can I say this with such conviction? Irish surveys have shown that 78% of smokers started when they were under 18 years of age. The figure is the same in the rest of Europe. How do they attract young people to smoking? Most young people will say they started smoking because it looked cool. For the tobacco companies, their nirvana is getting people addicted after smoking 20 fags. A person under the age of 18 years is a minor and the State has a duty to protect him or her. If one is addicted before reaching 18 years, what choice does one have after passing that age? This is one of the most addictive substances known and would not be legalised if it were discovered today. I intend to introduce a Bill to introduce plain cigarette packaging, as was done in Australia. That will tackle that form of advertising. Smoking causes cancers and pain, damaging the lungs, heart and throat.

I have been asked by the industry not to refer to it as evil. How else can one describe an industry that produces and promotes an addictive product to children which will kill one in two of them? I intend to wage war on this industry because it is killing more people in Europe every year than anything else. If one looks at the cumulative number of lives lost in Europe, one is looking at a greater number of people dying from smoking than were killed in the Second World War. No one can talk about a nanny state. Adults can do as they wish, but I, as Minister, and the Legislature have a responsibility to protect children and that we will do.

Section 2 repeals provisions contained in section 2 of the Tobacco Products (Control of Advertising, Sponsorship and Sales Promotion) Act 1978. It also revokes regulation No. 17 in the Tobacco Products (Control of Advertising, Sponsorship and Sales Promotion) Regulations 1991. These provisions contain price fixing elements which are seen to be in contravention of the relevant European Council directive. In this regard, they were deemed to be restricting the freedom of industry to make effective use of competitive advantage and must be removed. I have asked the Department to investigate how we can address issues of public health importance being dominated by a competition directive. It should never be a case of jobs over lives. The countries that grow tobacco should be offered incentives to become involved in other industries.

Specifically, section 2(1) repeals sections 2(1 )(c), 2(2)(h) and (2)(2)(i) of the 1978 Act. Section 8 of the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2002, as amended by section 4 of the Public Health (Tobacco)(Amendment) Act 2004, sets out the provision for the repeal of the 1978 Act. However, it is important to note that this provision has not yet commenced and the 1978 Act has not yet been repealed.

Section 2(2) is a standard saver provision. Section 2(3) revokes regulation No. 17 in the Tobacco Products (Control of Advertising, Sponsorship and Sales Promotion) Regulations 1991. This regulation had already been amended, while regulation No. 16 was deleted by the regulations I signed in December 2012 to remove any price fixing provisions from them. The revocation outlined is to allow my Department to introduce new regulations, mentioned previously, relating to sales promotion activities. This will ensure there will be no overlap of provisions.

Section 3 is a standard provision. It provides for the Short Title, collective citation, construction and commencement.

As a doctor with decades of experience, I have seen at first hand the damage caused to the health of those who become addicted to tobacco. Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable deaths in Ireland. Each year more than 5,200 Irish people die prematurely from diseases caused by tobacco use, while over 700,000 Europeans die annually from tobacco-related diseases. Smoking is the largest avoidable health risk in Europe; it causes more problems than alcohol, drug abuse and obesity. A study commissioned by the European Union estimates that in Ireland health expenditure on treating smoking related illnesses is approximately €500 million, while approximately €170 million is lost because of absenteeism and long-term incapacity due to smoking.

From my perspective as Minister for Health, Government tobacco control initiatives are about saving lives. However, it is obvious that from an economic perspective there is an additional incentive for us to reduce the number of smokers in our country. When we discussed this in Europe, it became apparent that the tobacco industry is worth approximately €20 billion to the Union as a whole, but we spend €25 billion every year in Europe treating the damage it causes in terms of health. It costs another €8 billion a year through lost productivity through absenteeism and ill-health. Morally, ethically and financially, this is not an industry that should be supported.

I am keen during my period as Minister for Health to make a significant impact on the area of tobacco. The regulation of the tobacco industry and its sales promotion activities, as set out in this Bill, is just one of the ways I hope to achieve this. A comprehensive range of tobacco control legislation is already in place in Ireland, which places us in the top rank of countries internationally. These include the workplace smoking ban in 2004, the ban of the sale of packs of cigarettes of fewer than 20 and the ban on in-store display and advertising. I was very pleased to introduce regulations placing an obligation on tobacco manufacturers to include photographs on cigarette and tobacco packs. These images depict the negative health impacts associated with smoking. Research and experience in other countries has shown that health warnings with coloured photographs can be an effective means of discouraging smoking and informing people about the health risks. These packs have been on sale since February. The picture warnings, together with the retail point of sale display and advertising ban, will have a positive impact on reducing the numbers of young people starting to smoke. It is heartening to see that in a recent survey the number of children smoking fell from 18% to 12% from 2002 to 2010.

However, more needs to be done. No single measure will significantly reduce the numbers who smoke. A range of initiatives is required, including those I have already set out. I hope to publish a strategy in the near future which will set out a plan for Ireland to deal with the problem of smoking. This strategy will set out various actions, including improving cessation services, educational initiatives, tobacco price increases, extensions of the smoking ban and research. Protecting children and the denormalisation of tobacco in our society are the key principles underpinning these actions.

I have heard stories, as I am sure other Members have, of children running home to their parents in tears concerned about their parents because the teacher has told them people who smoke are going to die. The parents have to reassure them that will not happen. This demonstrates our adult behaviour is hugely influential on our children. The less they see adults smoking, the less likely they are to become smokers. I assure Senators that while this strategy is being finalised, we are already moving ahead in achieving our goal of a tobacco-free society. Significant work is being undertaken at present in many areas. This includes the valuable work of Senators Crown, van Turnhout and Daly in developing a Private Member's Bill to prohibit smoking in cars where children are present. A lot of work has been done on that and I am aware another meeting is to take place shortly. The Office of the Attorney General is making good progress on the various issues raised by the Bill. I fully support this Bill and my officials are working with the Senators to ensure that an effective and robust piece of legislation is developed. It must be robust because the industry will challenge it at every opportunity. I would like to reiterate that this legislation is not about restricting the rights of adults, but is about protecting the rights of children.

I plan, in the near future, to seek approval from my Cabinet colleagues to proceed with the drafting of legislation to introduce plain or generic tobacco packaging in Ireland. With the introduction of tobacco advertising and display bans, tobacco packaging has become the key promotional vehicle for the tobacco industry. My aim is to ensure that all forms of branding - trademarks, logos, colours and graphics - will be removed from packages, apart from the brand name. All packs will be in a plain neutral colour, except for the mandatory health warnings. The objective will be to make all tobacco packs look less attractive to consumers and to make health warnings more prominent. Ultimately, this will make tobacco products appear to be the harmful products they really are. Australia was the first country in the world to introduce plain packaging and has successfully defended a legal challenge in its high court. While there is not complete evidence that these warnings reduce smoking, there is evidence, from Canada in particular, that since the introduction of the pictorial warnings, there has been a fourfold increase in smokers wanting to give up their habit. As I said, no particular move will improve the situation, but a range of measures.

Knowing what we know, if there was a drug available tomorrow that could save 700,000 lives a year in Europe, we would all be screaming for it. There is a drug available in Europe that is killing 700,000 people a year and we should be doing everything in our power to stop people using it. I am not a Minister who is anti-smoker. I want to support smokers to get them off cigarettes. However, I am 100% anti-smoking. I ask Senators to support this Bill today and any future tobacco legislation brought through the Seanad.