Cancer Research UK has sent an urgent plea to the Government today - calling for politicians to protect children and young people from tobacco advertising - to stop tobacco taking even more lives.
Cancer Research UK has sent an urgent plea to the Government today - calling for politicians to protect children and young people from tobacco advertising - to stop tobacco taking even more lives, today.
The petition is part of the charity's out of sight and out of mind*. It calls on politicians to close the loophole allowing tobacco to be displayed at the point of sale, to prohibit the sale of tobacco from vending machines and to make plain packaging for tobacco products compulsory.
Over 50,000 members of the public have signed up to Cancer Research UK's petition which will be delivered to Public Health Minister Dawn Primarolo by Naomi Hodgson, an 18 year old anti-tobacco advocate. Richard Davidson, Cancer Research UK's Director of Policy and Public Affairs, said: "Tobacco advertising has been banned on television, in print and on billboards. Yet children are still regularly exposed to branding on packs and attractive tobacco displays in shops, newsagents and supermarkets. We know that by removing tobacco from public view we can reduce the pull towards a potentially deadly addiction."
The petitioners will be joined by David Taylor MP, chair of the all party parliamentary group on smoking and health, who said: "This campaign is crucial as the measures Cancer Research UK is calling for could have a real impact on the number of smokers in the UK. As over 80 per cent of smokers start before the age of 19, it's particularly important that we focus on young people."
Many young people, particularly underage smokers, buy cigarettes from vending machines. Removing these machines altogether is the only effective means of preventing underage smokers obtaining cigarettes from these sources.