Tobacco sector blamed for swamping warning campaign in paperwork

Attempts are being to drown the Department of Health in paper to frustrate efforts to put larger warnings on cigarette packets, it has emerged.

The department’s chief medical officer, Tony Holohan, told the committee on health and children it had received 6,000 submissions in recent months.

“This is part of the tactical game to drown us in paper,” said Dr Holohan, who claimed the submissions were made by a range of different parties.

Health Minister James Reilly, who introduced the plain packaging bill when the committee met yesterday, said the submissions would be clear evidence of who the parties were.

Dr Holohan said some of the submissions made reference to the bill on standardised packaging, as well as the EU’s new tobacco directive.

He said the department had also noticed a significant rise in freedom of information requests and other activity being generated, directly or indirectly, by the tobacco industry.

“Part of the strategy is to delay us in our capacity, in terms of getting the necessary work done for the legislative process,” he said.

Dr Holohan said he had no doubt that it was a tactical exercise on behalf of the tobacco industry.

Dr Reilly said he would be astonished if the tobacco industry did not fight “tooth and nail” on the packaging issue.

“They know it is going to work as well and that is why they are terrified of it,” he said. “And they are going to leave no stone unturned and no group unsolicited for support to try and block this.”

He referred to a study by leading auditors KPMG and sponsored by the tobacco industry that raised doubts about the impact of plain packaging in Australia.

According to the study, there had been no reduction in smoking since the plain packets were introduced a year ago.

“I’d like to get the details about how that was carried out,” said Dr Reilly.

“This is the industry that knew in 1959 that they were selling a carcinogen but never told anyone. I would take very carefully anything that would emanate from a tobacco-sponsored report and examine it very carefully.”

Dr Reilly said part of the tobacco industry’s strategy was to threaten the State with litigation in a bid to get politicians to hold back.

“The tobacco industry would like to intimidate other countries, particularly a country like Ireland,” he said.

“It’s about putting another nail in the coffin of these coughing nails.”

Plain packaging for tobacco products is expected to be in place during the first half of next year.