Agenda item

To receive a report from the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health and the Director of Public Health on services to address the prevalence of smoking in Kent, which remains above the national average.

1.            Dr Khan introduced the report and outlined the work underway to address the prevalence of smoking in Kent, which was above the national average. This work included campaigns to promote plain packaging, to encourage young people not to take up smoking and to establish smoke-free parks, for which there was currently a pilot scheme in Shepway.  Dr Khan responded to comments and questions from Members, as follows:-

a)    no mention was made of the role played by the Fire Service in highlighting the dangers of smoking as a cause of house fires.  People would often be more willing to take advice from a uniformed firefighter than from the County Council;

b)    tobacco control was part of the health improvement model (HIM) and the data on which this model was based had been generated by a national health survey;

c)    work to determine the safety and effectiveness of e.cigarettes as a method of giving up smoking (eg, compared to nicotine patches) had been undertaken by University College London and Public Health England, and the current thinking was that their use was less harmful that smoking tobacco. However, the amount of nicotine contained in e.cigarettes was not yet regulated and hence could vary.  There was evidence that their use could cause minor hypertension;

d)    the import of illicit tobacco into a county with several points of entry -  ports and airports - would always present a challenge. Mr Scott-Clark agreed that strategic partnership working, including Ministerial support and work with Public Health England and NHS partners, would be the most effective way of addressing this and would be key to levering in all possible support to tackle illegal activity.  Kent was indeed a key route into London and the rest of the UK;

e)    work to address smoking prevalence and illicit tobacco was welcomed, although the news that Kent still lagged behind the rest of the UK in addressing smoking prevalence was disappointing.  Gillingham Football Club was currently running a healthy lifestyle project in an effort to teach families about healthy living and encourage them to reassess their lifestyles.  What was also of concern, apart from tobacco smoking, was the smoking of cannabis, and it would be useful to have a report to a future meeting on the prevalence of cannabis smoking and what could be done to address it. Mr Scott-Clark added that there was a clear north-south divide in the prevalence of smoking, and confirmed that prevalence was higher around areas where tobacco products entered the country;

f)     rates of mortality due to smoking varied between areas of affluence and deprivation.  Health survey data had shown that people in deprived areas were more likely to smoke, as well as to have other unhealthy behaviours.  It was also known that people from deprived areas tended to present with cancer symptoms later and were therefore less likely to be able to benefit from available treatment; and

g)    it was depressing to see young people smoking, and a clear message needed to be sent that smoking was definitely ‘not cool’.

2.            RESOLVED that work undertaken to address smoking and tobacco control issues be endorsed.