Source: Hartlepool Today
Date: 2010-01-27

LIFESAVING schemes to cut the number of people smoking are being
hit by cheap tobacco supplied by smugglers.

Health bosses have now joined forces with police, trading
standards and customs and excise staff to tackle contraband
cigarette bootleggers who are putting lives at risk for a quick
profit.

Regional figures have shown a third of teenagers and a fifth of
adults buy illegal tobacco, while 64 per cent of smokers said
cheap prices allowed them to continue.

Carole Johnson, head of health improvement for NHS Hartlepool,
said: "Research shows that a 10 per cent increase in price leads
to a four per cent drop in tobacco consumption.

"Hartlepool has one of the best smoking cessation teams in the
country, but this is not enough if people can still get their
hands on cheap cigarettes."