Revealed: State’s €17m shares in tobacco firms

THE Government owns €17 million worth of shares in cigarette manufacturing companies.

Despite the cost of tobacco-related diseases and plans to ban smoking in the workplace, the State pension fund continues to invest taxpayers’ money in tobacco firms.

Anti-smoking campaigners said last night the Government’s ownership of tobacco shares is entirely inappropriate.

State agency the National Pensions Reserve Fund is ordered by the Government to invest in firms which will deliver the best return and says it merely hires fund managers to invest in baskets of shares.

But ASH Ireland chairman Dr Luke Clancy said he was appalled the Government would hold tobacco shares and there was no excuse for the investments. “Investment decisions are not made at the spur of the moment. If they are saying they can’t control their money, then they shouldn’t be in control of anything,” he said.

Dr Clancy said it was possible to direct fund managers to invest in portfolios not linked to tobacco. Irrespective of the Government’s anti-smoking plans, the ownership of the tobacco shares did an extreme disservice to anyone interested in tackling smoking related diseases, he said.

“It was wrong yesterday, it’s wrong today and it will be wrong tomorrow,” he said.

The NPRF has invested over 8 billion worth of taxpayers’ money since it was set up and also holds shares in oil, arms and pharmaceutical companies.

Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy said when he set up the fund he considered if investments should be strictly commercial or should be based on ethical, environment and other public policy matters.

But he said the difficulty was in deciding where to draw the line and to reach consensus on ethical investments. The definition of an acceptable investment would also constantly change, the minister said.

Up to 7,500 people die from smoking each year and the treatment of tobacco-related illnesses has cost the State between €500m and €2bn, according to the Department of Health.

Medicine Weekly columnist Dr Gerard Caffrey said the Government is totally gung-ho against smoking and cannot bring in enough legislation in the area. Yet he says the tobacco shares place a question mark over the Cabinet’s commitment to the anti-

smoking strategy and shows the duplicity and hypocrisy of the Government.

“The Government will probably plead lack of knowledge of these investments, but ignorance is a poor defence. Then again, perhaps they might say that these tobacco products were not destined for sale in this country. An even worse defence,” he says.

According to the NPRF annual report, the portfolio includes €10,576,100 worth of shares in the US firm Philip Morris, €3,589,961 in British American Tobacco and €2,788,188 in the Imperial Tobacco Group, both British companies.