Parliamentary Search

Written question asked by Andrew Lewer (Conservative) on Tuesday, 5 March 2024, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 7 March 2024. It was answered by Andrea Leadsom (Conservative) on Monday, 18 March 2024 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies of the outcomes of the Tenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control; and if she will have discussions with the Leader of the House on making parliamentary time available for scrutiny of those outcomes.

Answer

Smoking is the number one entirely preventable cause of ill-health, disability, and death in this country. It is responsible for 80,000 deaths in the United Kingdom a year, and one in four of all UK cancer deaths. It costs our country £17 billion a year, £14 billion of which is through lost productivity alone. It puts huge pressure on the National Health Service and social care, costing over £3 billion a year. This is why the Government is committed to creating the first smokefree generation, ensuring no child born after 1 January 2009 will ever legally be sold tobacco.

The tenth Conference of Parties (COP10) to the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco control was an opportunity for the UK to showcase our international leadership on tobacco control. No decisions from COP10 will impact our plans to create the first smokefree generation, or our policies on vaping. I will update the House shortly on the outcomes from COP10.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
17244
Session
2023-24
Subjects
Parliamentary scrutiny WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk