Illegal Tobacco: how regulatory services can make a real difference

1. Illegal Tobacco:how regulatory services can make a real difference Peter Astley Head of Public Protection Warrington Borough Council I

2. the truth about illegal tobacco is the minimum cost to the country….. What is the true cost? £2 billion • £2 billion is lost to the exchequer each year! • Other economic impacts. • Undermines price elasticity! • Despite all the impressive tobacco control initiatives, smoking rates in our deprived communities remain stubbornly high!......thus perpetuates health inequalities!

3. the truth about illegal tobacco agree illicit tobacco brings crime into our communities 63% • Strong linkages to other crimes. • Involves organised criminality. • Undermines community cohesion.

4. the truth about illegal tobacco agree illegal tobacco is a “danger to kids” 87% • Enables young people to take up smoking. • Exposes young people to other forms of criminality. • Undermines age of sale regulation.

5. tobacco sales in NW region Effect of underage sales etc work & change in age legislation Unintended consequencies

6. Illegal tobacco: progress so far • Identifying the problem: • Young Persons Survey 2007 & 09. • Market Assessment. • Increased activity = increased intelligence. • Raised the profile within Councils & PCT’s etc. • SPOC in each TS department in NW. • Scanners for each TS department and coordinated enforcement activity. • Used funding to recruit North West specialist team thus paving the way for local enforcement teams to really make a difference.

7. TSNW illegal tobacco team: key roles • Develop effective regional intelligence gathering and assessment: • to improve the collection and dissemination of intelligence and to help identify ‘hotspots’. • Enable local capacity buildingto help ensure that regulatory services departments are better able to tackle illegal tobacco though: • supported enforcement; • partnership working with HMRC, Police etc; and • enabling them to be better placed to potentially identify potential funding. • Regional enforcement: • helping tackle large scale criminal networks by facilitating joint operations and coordinating regional communications activity. • What it cannot do???

8. illegal tobacco: threats & opportunities • Threats: • Spend on enforcement may get less (tax gap alone is £250million yet Councils & PCT’s already spend than less than 0.25% of this regionally on illegal tobacco). • PCT’s disappearing, less co-ordination etc. • Criminals will fill the void (especially at a community level). • Tax gap will grow. • Health inequalities will increase. • Opportunities: • PCT public health budgets & GP Commissioning? • Regulatory and other council services?

10. Illegal tobacco: local contributions • Ensure adequate resourcing and prioritisation. • Is this high enough up your organisations’ agenda? • Effective engagement of partners: • Tobacco control strategies. • LSP’s, CDRP’s etc. • Police, Customs etc. • Engage health & community workers: • Stop Smoking Services. • Neighbourhoods. • Regulatory services officers. • Which leads to……….

11. Illegal tobacco: local contributions • Effective intelligence-led enforcement • Multi-agency work has the greatest impact! • Preventative action: • Key role for tobacco alliances! • Work with the trade. • Healthy schools programmes etc. • Marketing & communications • Capitalise on Get Some Answers campaign. • Generates more intelligence and denormalises illegal tobacco (and other tobacco use)! • Support the North of England Programme!

12. Final thoughts…… Thanks for Listening!!