Fresh and Balance welcome action announced in the King’s Speech around smoking, but warn that much more needs to be done around the harms of alcohol
Fresh and Balance welcome action announced in the King’s Speech around smoking, but warn that much more needs to be done around the harms of alcohol.
The joint programme, which has over 30 years of combined experience working to address the impact of tobacco and alcohol on ill health, has welcomed today’s announcement that the new government will prioritise the Tobacco and Vapes Bill which will lead to a smoke-free generation. The programme has stressed much more needs to be done by the new Government to address the harms of alcohol.
Ailsa Rutter, OBE, Director of Fresh and Balance, said: “We warmly welcome that the new government has prioritised the Tobacco and Vapes Bill. This is needed because smoking is our biggest killer. It’s shocking to think that in the last 50 years, 8 million people have died because of smoking in the UK. Smoking is devastating to our health and our wealth, and it has no place in our children’s future.
“There are high levels of support for the bold smokefree generation proposal from the North East public, with nearly 8 in 10 backing the policy, and also partners across the region including every local council, every NHS Trust and the North East and North Cumbria NHS Integrated Care Board.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us all to unite and say yes, we should and will see an ultimate end to smoking, which will be amazing for our future generations. But we also know that to achieve the smokefree ambition there will also need to be action on alcohol as the two often go together.
“We want to encourage anyone who has been struggling to quit smoking to give it another go. There is lots of help across the region and thousands of people from all walks of life have now quit – with help, you’re much more likely to succeed. There are lots of great tips and details of local services at www.freshquit.co.uk.”
Sue Taylor, Head of Alcohol Policy with Fresh and Balance said: “Whilst we are encouraged to see decisive action around tobacco in the King’s speech, it’s disappointing that alcohol did not merit a similar mention. With annual costs of £27.4bn in England alone; record rates of alcohol deaths; 2 in 5 violent crimes fuelled by alcohol and an enormous toll on frontline services, national action on alcohol is long overdue.
“Here in the North East, we suffer disproportionately from alcohol harms and despite excellent partnership working in this region, we can only do so much. As we’ve seen with tobacco, significant reductions in harm require national legislation and government action on alcohol must be a cornerstone of building a safer, healthier and more economically productive country in the future.
“If anyone wants to know about the impact of alcohol on their health and tips for how they can reduce their drinking, they can find advice and details of local services at www.reducemyrisk.tv.”