It's news that is making noise across the Channel! According to information provided by the GuardianIndo public relations campaign against the NHS (National Health Service) and smoking cessation services, which led to articles in local newspapers across England reportedly funded by British American Tobacco .
A FURTIVE COMMUNICATION TO DEFEND THE NHS?
Last week the public relations agency Pagefield sent out press releases which appeared to attempt to discredit the NHS and the tobacco control services, which are believed to generate vast savings nationwide by helping people quit smoking. But problem, the Pagefield agency did not in any way specify that it was working for the cigarette manufacturer at that time. British American Tobacco .
Citing figures from the NHS, the press release documented the cost per taxpayer of plans in their areas without factoring in the money saved by health services from reducing the burden of smokers needing treatment. British American Tobacco, owner of the e-cigarette brand Vype, for its part suggested that the campaign was aimed at encouraging smokers to start vaping.
We understand that when this data was initially shared with reporters, it may not have been clear that it was on behalf of BAT. "- British American Tobacco UK
The press release was used in many local newspapers. The East London and West Essex Guardian wrote that Redbridge Council spent almost £ 5 on every smoker it helped quit in the past year, noting the amount spent on nicotine gums, patches and sprays. The Northumberland Gazette for its part titled: " The cost of smoking cessation services in Northumberland relative to the number of people who actually quit ". Yet and this is where the whole problem is, the articles did not mention the sponsor, ie British American Tobacco.
BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO WANTS TO HELP SMOKERS GO TO VAPE!
Following this observation, the BAT UK spokesperson said he was determined to reduce the impact of his activities on health by offering consumers a choice of risk-reducing alternatives including vaping products.
» We believe it is important to raise the debate on the new publicly available data which shows that the cost to the taxpayer of traditional tools to quit smoking has increased significantly compared to the cost of vaping. “, They declared.
« We understand that when this data was initially shared with reporters it may not have been clear that it was on behalf of BAT and as soon as we were made aware of this we asked our PR agency to recontact all journalists the next day to clarify this point. »
Pagefield, who previously worked for the tobacco giant Philip morris on his IQOS cigarette devices, said he has worked to raise awareness of alternatives to smoking and that this campaign seeks to encourage smokers to vape.
The communications company said: " Evidence shows vaping helps record number of smokers quit, public data showsEntations now reveal that vaping is cheaper than traditional weaning aids. This raises an important public policy issue, about which we gathered and released data earlier this week on behalf of BAT and Vype, and this was made clear to journalists we spoke to. "
Deborah Arnott, managing director of the Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) association said it was the first time to his knowledge that a tobacco company in the UK had employed a public relations agency to issue a press release that did not reveal the identity of his client.
« This secret vape advertisement claims to be public information and has been covered up as such by unsuspecting journalists. BAT has a horrendous and shameful track record stretching back generations. Last year alone, BAT broke the advertising rules by promoting its Vype e-cigarettes to young people on social media. »
The counselor Ian hudspeth, chairman of the Local Government Association's community welfare council, said that reducing smoking rates among the 6 million smokers in England was the "most important thing" that councils could do to improve public health, smoking-related illnesses cost the NHS around £ 2,5 billion a year.
