The removal of in-store tobacco advertising has been successful in reducing the awareness of smoking among young people, according to a study.

SENIOR gardaí are drawing up a hit list of pubs, shops and off-licences to be targeted for selling alcohol to underage drinkers.

AS many as 10,000 people working in wholesale and retail will lose their jobs in the second half of this year, resulting in almost 20% of retail sector workers being laid off over a two-year period.

CONCERT promoters MCD have been reported to health chiefs over the alleged promotion of cigarettes at the Oxegen Festival.

Concert promoters MCD have been reported to a health chiefs over the alleged promotion of cigarettes at a music event, it emerged today.

THOUSANDS of euro in fines have been handed out to businesses and private individuals found guilty of breaching the smoking ban, with one pub being hit with a huge €2,500 penalty in the past 12 months.

ONE in three shops and pubs are still selling cigarettes to minors, a study has revealed.

The Office of Tobacco Control has said there is a long way to go to ensure cigarettes are not getting into the hands of minors.

Officials today rejected claims that the removal of point of sale advertising and display of tobacco products in shops has led to an increase in tobacco smuggling.

DEPARTMENT of Health officials say they have no plans to follow radical proposals in the North to ban cigarette vending machines in bars and clubs.

The maker of Marlboro cigarettes today mounted a legal challenge to overturn the country’s ban on advertising tobacco products in shops.

Dublin: Tobacco retailers across the country have a deadline of next Thursday, October 1, to apply to register with the Office of Tobacco Control (OTC), to continue selling tobacco.

Retailers are being reminded that they must register with the Office of Tobacco Control if they want to continue selling cigarettes after next Thursday.

A complete ban on tobacco advertising in shops comes into force tomorrow.

Twenty-four businesses were prosecuted last year for allowing smokers to light up on their premises, a report revealed today.

The Office of Tobacco Control says 97% of workplaces are fully complying with the workplace smoking ban introduced more than five years ago.

A new state agency to monitor animal feed must be set up to prevent a reoccurrence of December’s pork contamination crisis, it was claimed today.

COMPLIANCE with the ban on smoking in the workplace is at an all-time high of 97% since its introduction five years ago.

It is now five years since the introduction of the smoking ban in the workplace. While this has undoubtedly contributed to a decline in the pub culture, the ban is being hailed internationally as a progressive piece of legislation that is being copied in other countries.

The Irish Cancer Society and the Irish Heart Foundation have joined forces to seek a €2 increase in the price of cigarettes in the forthcoming emergency budget.

While there is no longer any doubt about the harmful effects of tobacco, adults have a right to smoke it if they so desire. But society seeks to protect impressionable young people.

TWO out of five shops and two out of three licensed premises are still willing to sell cigarettes to children, new research shows.

Children are still being sold cigarettes in two out of five shops, it emerged today.

Teenagers who smoke believe they are not healthy but persist with their habit because they think it’s “cool”, research published today reveals.

The Government has announced plans to slash the number of agencies operating within the health sector.

THE slashing of 41 State agencies will be a “first installment” in a long term plan of reducing so-called quangos, Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said last night.

AS budget time rolls around again, the usual phobic anti-smokers are calling for an increase in the price of cigarettes.

AT LEAST €1 should be added to the price of a packet of cigarettes to discourage young people from smoking, the Office of Tobacco Control (OTC) said yesterday.

TWENTY retailers were prosecuted last year for selling cigarettes to children, but inspectors discovered three out of every 10 shops are breaching anti-smoking laws.

Twenty-nine Irish pubs were convicted of breaching the smoking ban last year, according to the latest figures from the Office of Tobacco Control.

IT was with much disappointment and concern here at the Irish Cancer Society, the national cancer care charity, that we reviewed the results of the SLÁN survey of Lifestyle, Attitudes and Nutrition in Ireland (April 30).

SHOP owners came under fire last night after a survey showed almost half of retailers were willing to sell cigarettes to minors.

Nearly half of all shops in Ireland do not ask children under the age of 18 for ID if they are purchasing cigarettes, according to a survey commissioned by the Office of Tobacco Control.

CIGARETTES went up by 30 cent per packet of 20 from midnight last night, but the cost of the other so-called old reliables, alcohol and petrol, have drawn criticism despite the fact they remain unchanged.

THE Irish Cancer Society (ICS) has called on the Government to expedite the introduction of pictorial warnings on cigarette packets to drive home the message that smoking is harmful to health.

One in three Irish teens as young as 15 years admitted to being “really drunk” during the past month, an international survey found today.

AT the Beyoncé concerts in Dublin (June 9/10) one set of songs opened with the pop star sprawled across a chair, under a spotlight, simulating smoking. She appeared to inhale deeply, exhale, and said a in a sultry tone: ‘That was good’.

A fifth of all young smokers are overweight or obese, a major tobacco control conference heard today.

A one-day conference is being held today to explore ways to stop children from starting to smoke.

MORE than 50 Irish children need to start smoking every day of the year if the tobacco industry is to maintain the size of its customer base in Ireland, an international expert has warned.

A PUB in Cork has been given the maximum fine for allowing patrons to smoke in a substandard smoking room.

ONE-IN-SEVEN pubs inspected by health officials last year were found to be in breach of the smoking ban.

Thirty-one pubs, three cabbies and one bus driver were prosecuted for breaking the smoking ban last year, it emerged today.

THE decision by the tobacco industry and others to abandon their challenge at the last minute to legislation that would enable the minister for health to ban advertising of tobacco products at point of sale underscores the cynicism of this industry.