Tobacco warnings ‘not up to the job’

HEALTH warnings on cigarette packs in the UK are “not up to the job”, a charity has warned after a new poll suggested standardised packs are more likely to put teenagers off smoking.

Teenagers in Australia – where plain packs were introduced almost a year ago – are more likely to be deterred from taking up the habit by cigarette packaging than British youngsters, according to the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

In December last year, Australia became the first country to introduce such a measure. Cigarette packs and other tobacco products are all sold in packets with a standardised brown colour, with only the brand name and warnings visible.

The Scottish government has said it will introduce legislation, but ministers south of the border have postponed measures to assess impact in Australia.

New BHF research found that only a third (36%) of UK teenagers are deterred from smoking by current cigarette packs, compared to almost half (48%) of their Australian counterparts.

The survey, of 2,000 people aged 13 to 18 from the UK and 500 from Australia, found three-quarters of British teenagers would support such a measure.

“The message from our young people is loud and clear: current health warnings aren’t up to the job and the UK Government must step up to the mark and introduce standardised packs,” said BHF chief executive Simon Gillespie.