WHO chief says tobacco lobby is at work in city

Tobacco industry lobbyists are working 'on the ground' in Hong Kong's political arena to combat efforts that have cut the smoking rate to a 30-year low, the head of the World Health Organisation says.

Dr Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun said the city had done 'extremely well' in its battle against tobacco - reducing the number of people who smoke daily to just 11.1 per cent of those aged over 15 - but it faced an uphill battle against challenges from the tobacco industry.

Chan (pictured), a former Hong Kong director of health, said she had been told that tobacco lobbyists would do 'all sorts of things' to fight the government's initiatives.

'People supported by the tobacco industry are working on the ground in Hong Kong to give trouble to people who are anti-tobacco,' she said.

'They will lobby politicians not to approve laws and they will do all sorts of things ... character assassination,' she said.

Chan's warning came four months after a divided Legislative Council ratified a 41.5 per cent rise in tobacco tax, adding HK$10 to the cost of a packet of cigarettes. The endorsement came only after a fierce political debate, in which traditional government allies either abstained or voted against the increase.

Opposition to the policy also dealt a blow to Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah, who proposed it in the budget in February.