Baroness Northover – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-09-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of smoking rates in low- and middle-income countries and how those rates are predicted to evolve over the next century; and how they take such rates into account in awarding development funding.
Lord Prior of Brampton
The Government recognises the significant impact of tobacco use in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Tobacco use is the world’s single most preventable cause of disease and the number of tobacco users is increasing in LMICs. If current patterns of use persist, tobacco will kill about 1 billion people in the 21st Century. Evidence indicates that by 2030, over 80% of the world’s tobacco-related mortality will be in LMICs.
Tobacco use is also a major barrier to sustainable development. A major driver of social inequities, tobacco use imposes significant social, economic and environmental harm on individuals, families and national economies.
Given the recognised impact of tobacco on international development, the United Kingdom Government is funding a project to strengthen the implementation of the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, using official development assistance funds. Through this project, we will share the UK’s experience in tobacco control to support LMICs to save lives by putting effective measures in place to stop people using tobacco.
