July 31, 2023

expert reaction to WHO report on the global tobacco epidemic 2023

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has published their ninth report on the global tobacco epidemic, tracking the progress made by countries in tobacco control since 2008.

Prof Nick Hopkinson, Professor of Respiratory Medicine, Imperial College London, said:

“Smoking is among the leading causes of premature death and disability across the world.

“This report from WHO shows that, although there has been progress in implementing the strategies needed to bring the tobacco epidemic to an end, we still have a long way to go.

“The UK scores well on many tobacco control measures, but there are still more than 6 million people in the UK who smoke. We are well behind target to achieve the Government’s SmokeFree 2030 ambition.

“In particular, the government is yet to adopt the recommendations of its own report – last year’s “Khan review: making smoking obsolete” which it commissioned.

“People who smoke need to have access to properly funded, comprehensive smoking cessation services. We need funded mass media campaigns to promote quitting and we need to raise age of sale for cigarettes from 18 to 21 to take legal purchase completely out of schools.

“This requires resources – it is well past time for a polluter pays levy on the tobacco industry, capping profits from products that kill two out of three people who continue to smoke. This would raise hundreds of millions of pounds directly into the Department of Health and provide funding for measures needed to bring smoking to an end.”

https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240077485

Declared interests

Nick Hopkinson is chair of ASH.