Health improvements and savings worth £2.3 million could be made in Calderdale if changes to tobacco packaging are introduced, it is claimed.
In June the Department of Health published draft changes to the regulations on tobacco packaging, including cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco, for consultation.
These include new policies on the packet colour, the text and typeface, and the appearance of individual cigarettes.
Calderdale Council’s Cabinet Member for Adults, Health and Social Care, Clr Ann McAllister, said: “As the first local authority in West Yorkshire to sign up to the Local Authority Declaration on Tobacco Control, Calderdale is firmly committed to helping people break the habit and to discouraging people from taking up smoking in the first place.
“Research into the effect of standardised tobacco packaging has shown that this can make a difference. It reduces the appeal of cigarettes, particularly to young people and increases the effectiveness of health warnings which means smokers tend to smoke fewer cigarettes.”
Standardised tobacco packaging was introduced in Australia in December 2012. Data from the Australian Treasury shows a 3.4% fall in tobacco sales by volume in the first year following the introduction of standardised packs.
If this was mirrored across England, Public Health England, (PHE), which carried out the research, predicts that total savings would be up to £500m.
Dr Cathy Read, from PHE in Yorkshire and Humber, said: “Some 700 children start smoking each year in Calderdale and we estimate that there are some 38,000 smokers in the area.
“We estimate that one in two will die prematurely as a result. Standardised packaging is a powerful measure that would help to save lives.
“The introduction of standardised packaging will be a major boost to our tobacco control efforts – helping move us closer towards achieving a tobacco-free generation.”
