Health chiefs say €1 cigarette tax hike would save 15,000 lives

HEALTH chiefs have called for a €1 tax hike on a packet of cigarettes inthe budget in a bid to cut the number of smoking-related deaths by 15,000.

The Irish Heart Foundation claimed that the increase would reduce the number of smokers in Ireland by 30,000.

Chief executive Michael O’Shea highlighted that since one in two smokers die from the habit, thousands of lives could be saved.

He urged the Government not to make the same mistakes as the last administration, which imposed a tax freeze for two years, claiming it had beenguilty of a spectacular policy failure.

“We’ve had two years of a freeze on tax increases we believe for no solid foundation, for no good reason,” he said at the launch of a new report.

“The data contained in our research shows that a €1 increase would reduce the number of smokers by 30,000. To have had that two years running would have doubled that effectively.

“We know that one in two smokers will die from their habit, so 30,000 peoplein Ireland will die earlier than they should have. That is startling stuff.”

The IHF also claimed research, conducted by Landman Economics, disproved the previous government’s belief that a tax increase would result in a rise of smuggling illicit cigarettes into the country.

Report author Howard Reed said, despite major tax increases from 1995 to 2005,smuggling rates remained unchanged.

The research found that a tax rise in the next Budget would bring in €68 millionin extra receipts and a further €28m in indirect public finance benefits.

Mr O’Shea said: “If we invest a portion of this extra income in a nationaltobacco control strategy, including funding for anti-smuggling measures and more realistic tobacco cessation measures, we can make savings in lives and money on an even greater scale.”

Attacking the last administration’s freeze on taxes, he went on: “This represents a spectacular policy failure by the last government and their officials.”

The Irish Heart Foundation will submit the findings of its report to the Taoiseach and Minister for Finance Michael Noonan to urge them to take action inDecember’s budget.

He said: “We will be asking for a meeting. We hope they will listen to whatwe’re saying and that they carry out the recommendations of the report.

“Lives are at stake and we need the money.”

Meanwhile, Retailers Against Smuggling contradicted the findings in thefoundation’s report and called for the Government not to increase tax oncigarettes.

A survey showed that 74% of shop-owners believe illicit tobacco is harmingtheir business and only one in five retailers said they believed the Governmentwas doing enough to tackle the smuggling of illegal cigarettes.

Spokesman William Hanley said: “Illicit tobacco remains the biggest threat tolegitimate businesses and it looks likely to get worse over the coming year ifit’s not tackled.”