[Intl-tobacco] Ireland: Minister bans all tobacco newspaper and magazine adverts

[Robert Weissman]

Minister bans all tobacco promotion
by RALPH RIEGEL
Source: Irish Independent, Tuesday, 5/30/00

HEALTH Minister Micheal Martin dealt the tobacco industry a multi-million p=
ound=20
blow yesterday by confirming a ban on all cigarette advertising and=20
sponsorships from July.

 The minister, speaking in Cork as he opened a major campaign against what
he termed ``the tobacco epidemic,'' said that all tobacco advertising in
newspapers and magazines will be outlawed from July 1.

 All tobacco sponsorships of major sporting events will also be outlawed
in five weeks' time. And the Government are to work closely with
pharmaceutical firms, such as the manufacturers of Nicorette, to
co-ordinate support measures for those seeking to quit smoking.

 In a sweeping crackdown on the tobacco industry he promised further
action including:

 * A trebling in fines, from =A3500 to =A31,500, for anyone selling cigaret=
tes
to the under-aged.

 * Further cigarette price-hikes on top of the 50p imposed on a pack of 20
cigarettes in the last Budget.

 * A nationwide schools education campaign.

 ``The reality is that tobacco-related illnesses kill half of those who
use tobacco. I am determined to work towards a tobacco-free Ireland,'' he
added.

 Under the minister's crackdown, all forms of tobacco advertising and
sponsorship will be banned, including high-profile sponsorships in the
motor-sport, snooker, horse-racing, greyhound-racing and entertainment
sectors.

 Penalties for breaches of the proposed new Tobacco Act will be extremely
heavy, the minister vowed.

 He stressed that the campaign will focus on underage smoking and drinking
through an historic classroom initiative. This, co-ordinated by the
Southern Health Board, is aimed at tackling the alarming findings of the
HBSC survey in 1999, which confirmed that children as young as nine have
experienced both alcohol and tobacco, some on a regular basis.

 The SHB's Policy on Alcohol, Tobacco and Drug Use in Schools is a drive
aimed at using education in the classroom to alert children to the dangers
of substance-abuse.

 The drive is aimed at alerting children as to the dangers of drug abuse
at an early age - while making the process easy-to-understand.

 The campaign is being co-ordinated to run in conjunction with World No
Tobacco Day, which occurs tomorrow.

 Last night, the National Newspapers of Ireland said it had absolutely no
argument with the health issues which motivated the ban, but warned on the
advertising repercussions.

 ``Advertising is the life-blood of media and there is a very real concern
that a ban on tobacco advertising will lead to a domino effect on other
forms of advertising,'' it said in a statement.

 ``Most important for newspapers is the principle of freedom of commercial
speech no government should ban the advertising of a product which you can
buy legally and use legally.''