Smokers ‘heroes of the nation’, says Farage

Nigel Farage has branded smokers the “heroes of the nation in terms of the amount of tax they pay” in response to a potential ban on cigarettes outside pubs.

The Reform UK leader lit a Benson and Hedges lantern outside the Westminster Arms, less than a quarter of a mile from the prime minister’s official residence on Downing Street, shortly before 6pm on Thursday.

Sir Keir Starmer previously told reporters that lives lost to smoking were “preventable” and that his ministers would “make decisions” on a ban on outdoor cigarettes.

Ministers could extend the indoor smoking ban to beer gardens, university and hospital campuses, sports fields, children’s playgrounds and small parks, according to leaked Whitehall documents seen by The Sun newspaper.

Answering questions at the pub, Mr Farage told the PA news agency: “You’ll notice very few people are drinking inside, they’re drinking outside.

“Why? Because they are allowed to smoke outside.

“I’ve been coming here for 30 years, regularly, every week, for 30 years.

“If the government says I can’t drink and smoke outside, I won’t come back.

“And I’m one of hundreds of regular customers at this pub who feel the same way.

“And look, you know, I understand that people don’t like smoke in enclosed spaces, but you have a choice now: you can be inside, you can be outside, you can avoid it if you want to.

“I don’t think the government has thought through the implications of this.

“Will we really be smoke-free by 2030? Well, let me ask you another question: Will we be drug-free by 2030?

“What the government is doing is attacking something that is legal, because they have given up on dealing with the illegal drug trade. But when you overtax tobacco, which is what we are doing, when you regulate people and almost forbid them from smoking anywhere, then you are putting it in the hands of criminals.”

Criminal Gangs in Australia

Mr Farage claimed that in Australia “cigarettes are now sold under the counter, and that large criminal gangs are behind the tobacco trade”.

According to the Australian Taxation Office, the Canberra-based agency has agreed to increase tobacco excise duties and related customs duties by a further 5% per year for three years. The increase will be at the usual index increases.

The previous Conservative government had proposed introducing a ban on cigarettes for everyone aged 15 or under this year.

The Tobacco and Vaping Act would make it a criminal offence for retailers to sell tobacco, herbal smoking products or cigarette papers to anyone born after 1 January 2009. The bill was close to being passed by the House of Commons before Rishi Sunak called a general election in May.

Labour proposed reviving these proposals as part of the Speech from the Throne in July.

“A bill will be introduced to gradually increase the age at which people can purchase cigarettes and impose restrictions on the sale and marketing of vapes,” Charles told his colleagues and MPs in the House of Lords.

The “political class”

Mr Farage said: “This is not just the Labour Party.

“I mean, this is the political class saying, ‘We know what’s best for you, you have to do what we tell you to do.’

“Rishi Sunak’s plans were so completely insane that in 10 years a 25-year-old will be able to buy a cigarette and a 24-year-old won’t be able to.”

When asked about the cost of smoking to the NHS, the MP for Clacton in Essex replied: “Well, the last time I looked, the income from tobacco was four to five times the cost to the NHS every year.

“So there is no economic argument.

“You could even argue that smokers are the nation’s heroes when it comes to the amount of tax they pay.”

Asked about plans for a smoking ban during a visit to Paris, where he attended the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paralympic Games, Sir Keir said: “I think it’s important to get the balance right, but anyone watching this who uses the NHS knows the organisation is on its knees.

“We need to lighten the burden, and that’s why I spoke before the election about moving to a preventive model when it comes to health.”

Preventable deaths

The Prime Minister added: “My starting point here is to remind everyone that over 80,000 people a year lose their lives to smoking. That is a preventable death.

“It is a huge burden on the NHS, and of course it is a burden on the taxpayer. So yes, we are going to make decisions in this space.

“More details will be revealed, but this is an avoidable series of deaths and we must take action to reduce the burden on the NHS and the burden on the taxpayer.”

According to the charity Action on Smoking and Health, hospital admissions for heart attacks fell by 2.4% in the year after smoke-free legislation was introduced in England in 2007, saving the NHS £8.4 million in the first year.

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