Counting the £180m cost of city's smoking and drinking problems
Councillors have backed plans to help tackle tobacco and alcohol issues costing Sunderland an estimated £180million a year.
Sunderland City Council Cabinet this week signed off on authorising officers to take “all necessary steps” to participate in the extension of the existing regional tobacco control and alcohol de-normalisation programme.
Known as ‘ Fresh and Balance’ , it has run since April 2016, with Durham County Councilleadcommissioneron behalf of seven councils in the North East, and the extension would see it last until September 30, 2024.
Sunderland Councillor Kelly Chequer, cabinet member for Healthy City, who presented the report, said the “economic burden of smoking inSunderlandisabout£70.8m per year”.
She added the “irresponsible use of alcohol is estimated to cost the city around £112m per year”, however, the programme is helping make progress.
CllrChequersaid:“Tobacco controlandaddressingalcohol harmsarebothcomplexissues and no single approach will be successful in isolation.
“Significant progress has been made over the past decade in reducing overall smokingprevalenceandembedding policies and campaigns to reduce the harms of alcohol.
“As Sunderland continues toexperiencesignificantproblems
with tobacco and alcohol-related harms, it remains imperative to ensure that evidence-based
approaches such as those undertaken by Fresh and Balance are sustained.”
She added both issues contribute “significantly to health inequalities in Sunderland” and across the North East.
According to a cabinet report, the contract to date has provided “continued value for money and good standards of performance”, and interest is now being sought from all councilstoextendthecontract from April 2022.
The current contract was let via an open procurement and is provided by County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust.
The current annual value for Sunderland’s contribution to the contract is £167,940, which is met from the Public Health revenue budget, and the extension would have no change on the costs.
Cllr Linda Williams, cabinet member for Vibrant City, agreed they have to continue toworktogetherproactivelyto tackle such issues.