It is interesting to note that the letter from People Acting for a Smokeless Society (South China Morning Post, September 9), again displays all the objectivity that the title of the organisation suggests.
The Chairperson of PASS takes issue with one of your readers for as she puts it, 'believing the tobacco industry', with regard to whether it can be shown that there is a link between advertising and tobacco consumption.
It is not a question of believing the tobacco industry, it is simply a question of commonsense and if you need to believe anything, believing the evidence. Singapore has a higher increase in the incidence of juvenile smoking than Hong Kong. Singapore totally bans advertising, Hong Kong does not. Furthermore, this issue was examined in great detail by the Supreme Court of Canada, which concluded that no evidence was produced that proved that link exists.
PASS presumably would take issue with our believing the Canadian Supreme Court as well, however from views expressed in PASS's letter it is safe to conclude that it has little of constructive use to add to the debate.
It suggests a combination of regressive taxation and heavy-handed legislation to address the issue of underage smoking, despite ample evidence that this simply will not work. The widespread availability of smuggled cigarettes in Hong Kong is a direct result of a high-duty policy championed by the anti-smoker lobby in 1991. Yes, higher taxes will stop some people from smoking, but this will be the elderly and others on a lower income.
Regressive taxation does not stop teenagers and given that smuggled cigarettes sell at less than the half price of legal imports, the argument put forward by PASS is clearly absurd.