Whatever happened to ...?
Sunday, April 20, 2008 Talk of Europe (below) reminds me that Forest used to belong to an association of European smokers' rights groups. Founded in 1992, it was called Smokepeace and members eventually included groups from Germany, Italy, Denmark, France, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Greece.
In 1995 a "secretariat" was set up in Brussels. Apco, a worldwide public affairs company, was recruited to run it facilitate meetings. Representatives of each national group would meet several times a year and international conferences were organised in Amsterdam and Seville.
I joined Forest shortly before the Seville conference in 1999. The organising team, led by Apco's Mark Dober, did a great job. Seville was a fantastic location, the food and wine were magnificent, the company was terrific, and I have never inhaled so much smoke in all my life. Socially, it could not have been better.
Two years later Smokepeace was quietly wound up. Starved of funding, it had neither the means nor the resources to have any serious political clout. Over the next few years most of the individual member groups bit the dust too.
Today - out of curiosity - I visited Apco's website to see what became of Mark Dober. This is what I found:
[His] main area of expertise is in health care and he has represented numerous influential companies and associations in the sector. He is a regular conference speaker on health care issues, recently chairing the European Pharma Marketing Congress, and speaking at the Drug Industry Association Congress.
You've got to laugh.
Simon Clark
Last night someone posted a potentially libellous comment on this post which I have deleted. I actually think this story is quite funny so, please, no diatribes against Mark Dober (or Apco). Mark's a good guy and doesn't deserve it. He's only doing his job.
Reader Comments (5)
I guess Mr Dober got an offer he couldnt refuse from the pharmas and took the 30 pieces of silver, then again I think anything set up in brussels has to be rotten to the core, they probably had Mr Dober targeted from inception of Apco thats the way they do things over there, just like the way they bought off homo Heath when they got him to sign over englands sovernity way back then, paving the way for the rest of their puppets like red ken and poodle blair. Its all very disheartening but we all have to hang in there so keep up the good work Simon.
Yet another group spitting in the wind and doing its own thing without reference to the rest and what has been actually happening:
http://www.cssronline.org.uk/
I can't see this succeeding as the only place matters will be sorted regarding smoking bans, eventually,is in court.
Blad, it's set up as a limited company with what looks like a smart address and refers only to "private clubs". Might it be connected to a smart "gentlemen's club" and have the ear of politicians and the Old Boys' Network? If so, it might succeed.
Does the Old Boys' Network still exist?
I'll bet it's not supposed to, Col, but they won't have been able to get rid of it that quickly! Bet even Ed Balls uses it!