Tobacco display wars
Sunday, November 30, 2008 Further to the Peter Mandelson post below, the Sunday Times reports that the government's proposed ban on shops displaying tobacco and other anti tobacco measures are expected to be abandoned this week "because of fears they will alienate voters during the recession".
If this is true it is very good news - but let's not count our chickens just yet. A very similar argument took place in Cabinet immediately prior to the vote that led to the smoking ban. The likes of John Reid fought hard for exemptions but it wasn't enough. ASH, Cancer Research et al will be working their socks off over the next few days trying to persuade ministers to stick with the original proposals - and of course they'll be lobbying their friends in the media with the argument (which we strongly dispute) that the proposals have huge public support.
The government will be under enormous pressure to do something - anything - so this could still go either way, with cigarette vending machines looking especially vulnerable. In fact, the Scottish edition of today's Sunday Times reports that the Scottish government is to go ahead with a ban on vending machines in pubs, clubs and hotels. Will England, Wales and Northern Ireland follow?
Today's media reports can be found HERE, and HERE. See also the Sunday Telegraph report (HERE)which picks up on the Evening Standard report and claims that "Peter Mandelson is at the centre of a Whitehall row over a planned clampdown on cigarette sales".
Reader Comments (5)
"because of fears they will alienate voters during the recession".
That is what they say, just like the recession is now being used as an excuse for pub and club closures. They would never admit it, but they know that many voters were alienated by the SBE, and they are perilously closer to a general election than they were then.
They alienated me years ago when they started to personally attack me for the lifestyle I live. There is NOTHING that would make me vote for them again ... not even if they said they would ban the ban because of course they would be lying through their teeth as usual.
I just hope Cameron's Tories are not so easily led by those who fake public support for anti-smoker legislation.
Whether his goes through or not is not quite the point. Labour have not cut and pasted ASH policy into law and as Timbone quite rightly says that they may have worries the smoking ban has aliented voters.
We were the first to experience ZanuLabour's jackboots and everyone else can hear their crunch on the gravel. Methinks the iron is hot and we should strike to get some concessions for pubs and private clubs.
proposed ban on shops displaying tobacco and other anti tobacco measures are expected to be abandoned this week "because of fears they will alienate voters during the recession".
According to the Telegraph, it is because
they would harm the profitability of small businesses during the slump.
The cost to small businesses of putting all their tobacco products under the counter must be very high. And presumably sales of these hidden products would fall as well. So there are good economic reasons for Mandelson to object to this measure.
Who fears alienating smoking voters? They never did when they brought the smoking bans in. We're nobodies as far as they are concerned.
From the Times:
MEASURES to help cut smoking and drinking are expected to be shelved this week because of fears they will alienate voters during the recession...
...the legislative programme is designed to appeal to “white van man”; that is, working-class swing voters who are more likely to smoke and drink
I really don't understand this. The smoking ban has already alienated a lot of "white van" smoking voters. Putting tobacco in white packages to be sold under the counter would have alienated a few more of them - that is, the few remaining smokers who somehow or other don't yet know that this Labour government hates them and wants to exterminate them.
From this report it sounds like the government is at last beginning to get ever-so-slightly cold feet about ramping up its war on smokers. If it really wanted to win back their votes, it could do no better than to repeal the ban. And even then they won't win back many votes from people who hate them for what they did.
Perhaps this report signals a shift in government thinking. I can't see that it will win them any votes. It just won't lose them yet more votes.
This is a government of zealots and bigots. It would be good news if that zealotry and bigotry is beginning to give way to electoral common sense. But I can't see what good it will do them now. They're shutting the gate after the horse has bolted.
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