Govt dumps $222m tobacco investments
THE federal government’s Future Fund will offload $222 million worth of tobacco company investments because of the “damaging health effects” of tobacco products.
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Tobacco
The following articles have the tag Tobacco
Safety of non-smoking hotel rooms questioned
PARTIAL smoking bans in hotels do not protect non-smoking guests from exposure to tobacco smoke and tobacco-specific carcinogens, research shows.
Future Fund dumps $222m of tobacco investments
THE federal government's Future Fund will offload $222 million worth of tobacco company investments because of the "damaging health effects" of tobacco products.
Cannabis a stroke risk in young adults?
AS THE push to legalise cannabis for medical use continues, New Zealand research suggests smoking the substance may double the risk of stroke in young adults.
EU menthol cigarette ban to curb uptake of young smokers
THE European Union plans to ban menthol cigarettes and force tobacco firms to print large health warnings covering 75% of packets in proposals released on Wednesday, the first for more than a decade.
Investments ‘undermine’ anti-smoking gains
THE Australian Greens say the Future Fund is hiding behind “sham” practices to justify its investment in the shares of tobacco companies.
'It's what's on the inside that counts’ cigarette campaign blasted
HEALTH Minister Tanya Plibersek has criticised a tobacco company over a “last gasp” attempt to advertise its wares by poking fun at plain packaging laws before they take effect.
Greens want Big Tobacco banned from Future Fund investments
THE Greens have called on the government to exclude tobacco companies from its Future Fund investments in the wake of the Commonwealth’s High Court victory for tobacco plain packaging laws.
Plain packaging victory should inspire other countries: Roxon
THE federal government’s High Court victory against Big Tobacco on the issue of plain packaged cigarettes should inspire other countries to push ahead with plain packaging laws, Attorney-General Nicola Roxon has said.
High court rules in favour of tobacco plain packaging
THE federal government has secured a big win over big tobacco with the High Court ruling Labor's world-first plain packaging laws are constitutionally valid.
Smokers’ rights group ‘Pythonesque’
THE Australian Smokers’ Rights Party, which aims to end plain-packaging legislation and permit smoking in pubs, will get as much respect as a “typhoid rights” or “drink to get drunk” party would, according to a leading public health expert.
Smokers’ push for rights likened to Monty Python
THE Australian Smokers’ Rights Party, which aims to end plain-packaging legislation and permit smoking in pubs, will get as much respect as a “typhoid rights” or “drink to get drunk” party would, according to a leading public health expert.
First State Super incinerates tobacco links
SUPERANNUATION fund First State Super has wiped from its investment portfolios all companies involved in the manufacture of tobacco products, in a move welcomed by cancer specialists.
Government slammed over attempt to block alcohol labels
A MELBOURNE law school academic has blasted Australia’s attempts to block Thailand from introducing graphic alcohol warning labels, suggesting the government is only objecting for the sake of the Australian wine industry.
Big tobacco using loophole to entice kids
TOBACCO companies are dodging Australian advertising bans by using films, TV and the internet to target children, a survey has found.
Government tobacco purchase under fire
THE government’s purchase of tobacco shares has come under fire as the value of its tobacco holdings increased by more than 50% in the past 18 months.
Shop fined $380,000 for openly displaying cigarettes
THE owner of an airport duty free shop has been hit with a $387,500 penalty – more than half of which goes to the NSW Ministry of Health – after openly displaying 29 cartons of cigarettes in a sales area.
NZ plain packaging sparks anger from Big Tobacco
THE New Zealand government’s plan to follow Australia’s lead on plain packaging of tobacco products has sparked anger from British American Tobacco New Zealand and Phillip Morris who say they will fight the move in court.
Full court to hear Big Tobacco's challenge against plain packaging
ATTORNEY-General Nicola Roxon says she is very confident laws requiring cigarettes to be sold in plain packages will survive a High Court challenge.
Govt files defence for plain packaging of cigarettes
THE federal government’s battle with big tobacco over plain packaging laws has entered its next phase, with the government filing its defence in the High Court.
Anti-smoking’s Chapman tells UK artist to butt out
HIGH profile anti-smoking campaigner Professor Simon Chapman has called on British artist David Hockney to “stick to painting” after a brawl in the letters column of UK The Guardian.
Kangaroo image on cigarettes “insulting”
A LEADING public health lobby group has branded a major tobacco company “insulting” and “cynical in the extreme” for using a kangaroo image on cigarette packages overseas.
Govt might lack funds to fight big tobacco
THE federal government admits it hasn't budgeted for a legal stoush with big tobacco over the world-first plain packaging laws that have passed the Senate.
Tobacco to remain branded for now
THE federal government has delayed the introduction of tobacco plain packaging laws until December 2012, blaming the five-month delay on the Senate, which has yet to pass government legislation already passed by the lower house.
WHO call to unite against Big Tobacco
THE World Health Organization (WHO) has urged governments to unite against Big Tobacco, accusing the industry of dirty tricks, bullying and immorality in its quest to keep people smoking. WHO director-general Dr Margaret Chan cited Australia’s plan for plain packaging while accusing cashed-up tobacco firms of using lawsuits to try to subvert national laws and international conventions aimed at curbing cigarette sales. "It is horrific to think that an industry known for its dirty tricks and dirty laundry could be allowed to trump what is clearly in the public's best interests," Dr Chan ...
Ugly cigarette packaging intended to deter new smokers
THE Federal Government has fired its latest salvo in the war against smoking, proposing that tobacco companies should be forced to make cigarette packs plain and olive green in order to be “as unattractive as possible”. The draft legislation, launched last night by Health Minister Nicola Roxon, would also ban companies from putting their logos on packaging. Instead, health warnings and graphic pictures would take up to 90% of the front of the pack and 75% of the back. “We’ve done a lot of research to ensure that we make the cigarette packs as unattractive as possible,” ...
Call to ban smoking in alfresco areas
LEGISLATION to ban smoking in outdoor eating and drinking places is supported by Australian researchers, who have quantified its impact on air quality in such locations. A study of the air quality in alfresco areas of 28 cafés and pubs in Perth and Mandurah, WA, revealed that when two or more people were smoking in these areas, the particulate matter (PM) level rose to that regarded as at risk for people with respiratory symptoms. An effect was noticeable when even one person was smoking, with PM levels rising by 3.98 μg/m³ after a minimum of 19 minutes’ ...
Resources boost needed for GPs to lead preventive health revolution
PRICE hikes on cigarettes and alcohol to improve population health have won broad support from the medical profession, but GP groups and academics say doctors will need far more support to take on preventive health. Released just one day after the draft National Primary Health Care Strategy , the 307-page National Preventative Health Strategy outlines a series of measures to tackle illness associated with obesity, alcohol and smoking. While much of the strategy focuses on population-wide health measures, GPs have also been asked to take a greater role in preventive ...
World report - 27 March 2009
• CHINA'S ANTI-SMOKING PUSH TARGETS DOCTORS THE Chinese Health Ministry is targeting the country’s male doctors who smoke, believing it to be one way to reduce the country’s soaring smoking rate. China has the highest rate of smoking among doctors in the world, with 56.8% of male doctors using tobacco, according to the China Preventive Medicine Association. Ten medical schools and 10 medical associations have already signed up to the campaign, pledging to make their premises smoke-free and promote tobacco control among their students and members. More than half of adult Chinese males smoke, according ...
World report - 20 March 2009
• IN-STORE GP CLINICS UK supermarket giant Sainsbury’s has announced plans to roll out up to 200 in-store ‘polyclinics’ around the country. According to GP magazine Pulse , more than a quarter of Sainsbury’s 785 UK supermarkets have been earmarked to house after-hours or in-hours GP clinics. Some may even house branch surgeries. Applicants for franchises will be vetted by PriMed Services, which is owned by Dr Mohammed Jiva, a GP who opened the first clinic in a Sainsbury’s store in Manchester early last year. NHS services in-store would be funded by regional Primary ...