Death and The Big Questions
Saturday, June 5, 2010 
I was due to appear on BBC1's The Big Questions tomorrow morning, live from Leicester. The programme, presented by Nicky Campbell, was going to discuss the prohibition of tobacco.
ASH were going to be on too. Apparently we were going to be on the same side for once, although I take with a pinch of salt anything ASH has to say on the subject. They may say they're against it but prohibition is clearly the long-term goal, whatever they say now.
Anyway, because of the Cumbrian killings (which will now be the lead item), talk of tobacco has been postponed to a later date.
A producer rang me on Thursday and said: "I'm very sorry but we don't want to do two items about death in the same programme."
Oh well, forewarned is forearmed. At least I know what the theme will be when the subject is eventually discussed.
Reader Comments (3)
Here is the blueprint for the illegalisation of tobacco from Professor Robert West a trustee of ASH.
"Public support in England for a total ban on the sale of tobacco products."
"Conclusion Support for movement towards a ban on the sale of tobacco is higher than might be imagined. It is conceivable that as smoking prevalence falls further and smoking becomes more socially unacceptable, support might grow to a point where such a policy could become feasible. "
http://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/19/2/143.abstract
That's funny...whenever I talk to people about tobacco prohibition being a possibility, everyone seems to agree that things have gone too far already. There is not overwhelming support for further tobacco control, for one thing the issue is as much about eroding civil liberties as it is about tobacco control, and this is very often the voice of non-smokers who can no longer socialize with their friends...and we all know why that is - don't we?
Perhaps we can see this evidence of public support and I don't mean 'public sector' support.
It will be one of those rigged public sector DOH parasite (smoke free this that or the other) type of polls.
I am sure they sharpen there noses with a barbers strop first.
Especially the "warty bit" on the end.