Editor’s Note: The Liverpool Echo published an investigative article about counterfeit cigarettes with an emphasis on the extraordinary harm from these contaminated products. Below is a Letter to the Editor the Echo received about the article.
It’s time to quit
I WAS very interested to read the recent article about lifting the lid on the multi-million pound illegal cigarette trade in Liverpool.
Organised gangs have bought cigarettes from China to sell in pubs, corner shops and newsagents across the city as they look to make money off the sky high levels of tax in the UK.
Britain is now the second most expensive place to smoke in the world, with a packet of 20 cigarettes setting people back £7 and illegal packets are on sale for half of that price.
The price tag is clearly appealing for smokers, but it is also very worrying as smoking counterfeit cigarettes dramatically increases the health risks of smoking.
Health@Work, of which I am chief executive, aims to support employers throughout Liverpool to improve the health and wellbeing of their staff, not only with regards to smoking but across a wide range of health issues.
We are currently working with Liverpool PCT, for example, to offer a Workplace Wellbeing Charter for businesses, which is an award for companies who are committed to improving workplace health.
The Charter focuses on seven different areas to improve health, and includes smoking as one of its key topics. Our health advisors give people advice on how to give up smoking and raise awareness of the benefits of a smoke free lifestyle.
I do hope that news of illegal operations like that will deter people from buying counterfeit cigarettes that can put their health at serious risk, and that many more employers and individuals will consider embracing the help that is available in Liverpool to quit smoking.
Frances Molloy, chief executive of Health@Work
