Hiqa launches analysis of tobacco affordability in Ireland

The watchdog said affordability plays a key role in the number of people who take up smoking and continue to smoke. FIle picture: PA

Hiqa has started work on an analysis of tobacco affordability in Ireland.

The watchdog said affordability plays a key role in the number of people who take up smoking and continue to smoke.

Hiqa said it will compare tobacco affordability in Ireland with that in other EU countries and the United Kingdom, and examine whether alternative measures should be used to assess affordability.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), tobacco taxation that exceeds both inflation and income growth is considered one of the most effective tobacco-control measures.

Alongside other policies, such as public health warnings about the dangers of smoking and advertising bans, higher tobacco taxes help discourage people from taking up smoking and encourage smokers to quit, Hiqa said.

A recent report from the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland found that smoking prevalence in Ireland among people aged 15 and older has changed little in recent years, remaining between 17% and 18% from 2019 to 2025.

Hiqa said that while taxation has added 24% to the price of a packet of 20 cigarettes since 2020, average weekly earnings have increased by 28% over the same period.

Affordability and smoking rates 

Hiqa deputy director of health technology assessment Michelle O’Neill said that as affordability decreases, “smoking initiation and tobacco consumption decline and quit attempts increase”.

“In our analysis, we will consider how Ireland compares to other countries in terms of tobacco affordability, and we will consider different affordability indicators such as household disposable income, wage growth and household expenditure, in addition to GDP, to get a fuller picture of how affordable tobacco is for the average Irish household,” Ms O’Neill added.

The protocol for the assessment of tobacco affordability in Ireland is now available on the Hiqa website.

A report summarising the findings of the analysis will be finalised and submitted to the Chief Medical Officer and the Department of Health.