The tobacco industry is unlike any other donor as its products kill people – but this has not stopped all parties from accepting their generous donations. And it didn’t stop Bronwyn Bishop harassing witnesses at a Joint Standing Committee inquiry last week, writes Anne Jones.
Tobacco industry
Do public health advocates get more active in online discussion
A recent study conducted by Becky Freeman found that those opposed to plain packaging cigarettes are much more likely to post responses online, despite public opinion polls showing strong support for tobacco control measures.
healthcare Why the tobacco industry is bad for public health (beyond the obvious reasons)
Everybody knows the basic reasons why the tobacco industry is bad for public health. But here are five examples of how tobacco giants block potentially important policies.
Smokers revolt! How the cig tax will hurt the working folk
Smokers meet outside buildings across Australia and talk almost every day. Now they are talking of dumping the Rudd government, says Lionel Elmore.
On ciggies, Australia the world leader in public health reform
Plain cigarette packaging was removed from the public health agenda in the ’90s due to the threat of legal action. But in 2010, it seems governments won’t be so easily scared off by this legal hot air, write Becky Freeman and Professor Simon Chapman.
Cigs up: just a puff of hot (smokey) air?
Daily media wrap: Australia has gone into a cigarette-buying frenzy, with news that smoke prices would jump 25% overnight. But is the country also buying into Rudd’s ETS smokescreen?
Why Australia is more addicted to coal than tobacco
Today Kevin Rudd took on a powerful and hugely cashed-up lobby group — too bad it was the tobacco lobby and not the coal industry, says Tim Hollo.
Preventative health lobby inflicting serious damage on our freedom
If smokers are not imposing any net cost on society, why are we endlessly assailing them and the companies that cater to their addictions?
Draconian, perhaps, but changing fag packaging will work
So the Rudd government is adopting the world’s “most draconian” cigarette packaging regulations? Good, says Nicholas Gruen.
Do plain cigarette packs stop people from smoking?
Yep, according to this 2008 study from the British Medical Journal’s Tobacco Control journal. Smokers presume cigarettes in plain packs will be “less rich in tobacco, less satisfying and of lower quality tobacco.”
Will Rudd’s ETS woes go up in smoke?
Daily Media Wrap: Less than two days after Rudd’s ETS backflip, the government has pulled a sleight of hand: announcing it will introduce tough new laws for cigarette packets. Ta-da! Health is back on the national agenda.
Plain packs: tobacco industry bares its butts to bluff Rudd
There is one easy, preventative health plan that Rudd could implement: forcing plain packaging of cigarettes. Plain packaging “can kill your business” says the tobacco industry. Precisely.
Join in the hunt for dodgy tobacco marketing
Researchers from the University of Sydney are exploring how the tobacco industry is exploiting Facebook, Youtube and Twitter to promote its products. Help them in their hunt for social media smoking shame.
Pfizer’s campaign to drug as many smokers as possible
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is running a major campaign to convince Australian smokers that they should not try to quit without taking anti-smoking medication, writes Simon Chapman.
Taxing fags an unhealthy obsession
Is more taxation the solution to Australia’s “health crisis” — if there even is a health crisis? asks Sinclair Davidson. The medical profession may get more money, but there’s no reason to believe it will solve the smoking or alcohol crisis.
Big Tobacco sues to keep ciggie packets smoker-friendly
In Australia, graphic anti-smoking photos on cigarette packets are now the norm. President Obama has signed a law for similar requirements in the US. But the tobacco industry is fighting back — with the first amendment.
Health insurers have $4.5bn invested in Big Tobacco
Harvard doctors investigated the stock interests of health and life insurance companies, and found they have nearly $4.5 billion invested in tobacco stocks.
Surgery is not the solution to obesity epidemic
The House of Reps committee wimped out on making a strong call to action for some bold obesity prevention policies — like tougher regulation of food formulation and a ban on junk food advertising to kids, writes Melissa Sweet.
Why increasing tobacco taxes is good for the poor
Research shows the poor and the young are responsive to increases in cigarette prices, says Simon Chapman — when cigs go up, they smoke less and are more likely to quit.
How Big Food is copying Big Tobacco
Researchers say the US food industry is employing the same legal, political and business strategies previously utilised by Big Tobacco, and the health consequences could be dire.
Liberals’ lucrative love affair with big tobacco
The NSW Liberal Party continues to accept donations from tobacco companies despite both Malcolm Turnbull and Joe Hockey urging people to quit smoking, writes Bernard Keane.
Mission Australia under fire for tobacco links
Mission Australia’s concerns about young people and drugs are no doubt genuine, but would be much more credible if they were not themselves associated with leading drug-peddlers, writes Mike Daube.
Is Qantas giving big tobacco the executive treatment?
Is Qantas’ recent executive appointment linked to the airline’s decision to sell ciagarettes duty-free on flights? Glenn Dyer poses the question.
