Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This Bill is another element in the legislative framework designed to combat tobacco smoking. It gives us the opportunity to again focus on the enormous damage tobacco smoking does to the health of people and the huge cost to society of tobacco smoking. It also provides us with an opportunity to address the ongoing campaign to reduce and, hopefully, eventually eliminate this practice, creating a smoke free society.

There will always be a remnant of smoking among a small minority but for maximum effect the aim has to be a smoke-free society in Ireland. Much progress has been made. Measures undertaken by successive Governments and the campaigning work of the Irish Cancer Society, the Irish Heart Foundation, ASH Ireland and others have greatly reduced the number of people smoking and have unquestionably hugely improved public health. A combination of public education and pricing measures has ensured the reduction in the number of people who smoke.

It is still a startling statistic that just under 25% of the population in Ireland are smokers. The number of young people taking up smoking and becoming addicted at an early age must be continually addressed. It is estimated that smoking causes well over 5,000 deaths each year, mainly as a result of conditions such as lung cancer, heart disease, stroke and emphysema. Almost one third of cancer deaths and 90% of lung cancers in Ireland are attributed to smoking. The cost to society in human and financial terms is enormous. One estimate of the cost to the State in health service provision in a single year is €1 billion, approximately one third of which goes on hospital admissions. It is estimated that if smoking continues to increase at the current rate it will be the single biggest cause of death worldwide before the middle of this century. This is because the tobacco industry’s greatest area of expansion is developing countries that have not yet put in place the preventive measures that have been provided for in developed countries such as Ireland.

The tobacco industry is an industry of death and it is exploiting the most disadvantaged people on our planet. However, there are still people who lobby on its behalf, including in this country, happy to benefit from the enormous profits reaped by these multinational drug pushers. It has been rightly said that if the tobacco drug was first developed in our time it would never have been authorised for sale and would have been banned outright. That is not an argument for a ban on smoking, as prohibition would be unworkable and would merely drive it underground, thus benefitting organised crime. However, the point does underline the lethal nature of this drug.

In terms of legislation, the ban on smoking in enclosed workplaces has been a huge success. As well as improving the health of workers and those visiting premises, the knock-on effect of making smoking less socially acceptable has been profound. It is now common for people who smoke, especially those with children, to do so only outside their homes. This Bill provides for plain, standard packaging for tobacco products and as such is a welcome addition to the legislative framework. It will not, of itself, I believe, lead to a dramatic reduction in consumption but it has to be seen as another element in the campaign to reduce smoking.

The tobacco industry spends enormous sums on product design and presentation. It is also opposed to legislation of this type, which is reason enough to support it. Guím gach rath ar an reachtaíocht seo agus tá súil agam go dtiocfaidh sé chun cinn chomh tapaidh agus is féidir.