Madam, - Seán Mac Connell throws welcome light on the plight of the long-time smoker and describes the intensity of nicotine addiction most accurately.
However, we cannot agree with his analysis that the best way to make smoking popular is to ban it. The workplace smoking ban introduced in March 2004 was designed to protect non-smokers from the harmful effects of smoking. It also had the very welcome effect of reducing the incidence of smoking - but only temporarily.
Unfortunately, smoking is now on the increase and the most recent data available from the SLAN 2007 survey shows that 29 per cent of the population smoke. This inevitably means that more people will die from cancer and other smoking-related diseases.
Since the introduction of the workplace smoking ban and the establishment of the Office of Tobacco Control, the Government has made no real concerted effort to reduce smoking. To make any real impact on the numbers of people smoking, we need a major public awareness campaign comparable to the campaign to curb road deaths.
The Irish Cancer Society is working to establish a zero-tolerance attitude to smoking among young people, who are constantly targeted by the tobacco companies. Over the next five years we want to reduce the percentage of young people taking up smoking from 18 per cent to 10 per cent.
It may be too late for Mr Mac Connell, but not for many thousands of young people who are not being protected from the threat of smoking addiction. - Yours, etc,