1 Month to Go......

[MrsT]

Till our pubs are clear of the smelly smokers, I can't wait, of course there'll still be some jam tarting but that's minor in comparison to the foul odour of your weed addicts. Are you looking forward or dreading? Smokers, how will you cope? Will you give up or puff on defiantly? Non smokers will you go outside with your sad addict friends or just wait inside while they have a fix?

[MrsT]

Oh and "Jam tarting" is rhymming slang, see if yo can work it out.

[redcrx]

MrsT how does the cost you quoted of �25b come about?

[MrsT]

Well Redcrx there are countless costs involved but consder things like this

- sick days lost
- clean up costs
- provision of smoking facilities
- Fire brigade costs
- Benefits incurred due to smoking illnesses ie invalidity benifit, daily oxygen, home helps. Motability etc
- Benefits paid because the cost of smoking makes work unviable
- Govermenet ant smoking campaigns
- Caring for the unfortunate sick offspring of smokers
- caring for deformed children for life, caused by smokers
etc
etc
I could go on , you get the picture.

[MrsT]

As I said Before TH, they are sad addicts to be pitied, I don't hate them, I don't think they are horrid, I do associate with them. I try to help them, I wish they would help themselves.

[Reverandfunk]

Not disgruntled just have to laugh at you.

Bet you wouldn't go up to 6 foot 2 Hells Angel and say f78k off out of my face. I am a respectful smoker and if I came accross someone like you would just enquire as to exatly what you were going to do.

I do smoke and will continue to smoke, will I cry about the ban? eeerrr no.

Bet you would cry when you had 9p lumped on to your basic rate of tax.

[redcrx]

so its an estimated cost then, i assumed you had a breakdown of figures

Sick days, do only smokers have days off sick? what about people who often take sickies for coughs and colds or just because the footy is on?

Provision of smoking facilities where? Companies that provide them pay for them from their own money. Pubs and clubs take it out of profits, do you thing purchase prices of things will lower if companies dont need to provide a smoking area? No their profits shall increase.

Fire brigade costs - how much money do you think is spent on putting out fires caused by cigarettes? Not a lot i shouldnt think. Arson, car accidents, electrical faults, automatic smoke alarms are the sorts of things our local station are called to

Benefits - same could be said for drinking and alcohol couldnt it? and I think our benefit system is the reason a lot long term unemployed dont worry about getting a job, they can afford to sit at home all day smoking.

yes the effects on children are a sad result of parents smoking and one that everyone would wish didnt exist

as i said before, i welcome the change, but sometimes some people take these things too far.

[Reverandfunk]

With respect Mrs T you can apply most of those things to lumps of lard or alternatively alcoholics. Alcohol has created more misery than smoking ever has.

How does every feel about the tax issue? Would everyone be happy paying another 8/9p on their basic rate i.e nearly half as much again?

I do agree that smoking is a dirty habit but it annoys me it is still LEGAL to buy them. If it's so so bad why not ban cigarettes??

[MrsT]

Well reverend I assume the "I'm ard" stuff is for laurence! anyway did you read what I wrote above about the tax myth?

[MrsT]

yes Reverend and Redcrx other things cost too. We are talking about smoking costs, not the other things. I'm making no points about booze/lard etc. The costs are estimated yes, as indirect things are not quantifiable, what I'm saying is that it's a myth to assume that smoking is net contributor to the treasury. So it's a myth to say it represents 9p on tax.

Prohibition does not work Rev, ask the yanks. What we have is the next best thing. Smoke if you must but do it where it won't be an irritaion to others.

[laurence2]

Hells.Angel ?

Is this where i have to say i'm scared now ? pmsl


As long as you are respectful, i have no issue, the fun starts when your not?

Ps, 6ft 2 Hells Angel would'nt give me sleepless nights trust me, the bigger they are the harder they fall my friend, your do very well to remember that.

Hells Angel ha ha, i've seen ''every which way but loose''!

[Reverandfunk]

It just seems like if you smoke yr made to feel like a leper but on the other they want the tax off you. I think its called having your cake and eating it.

[MrsT]

well thanks TH, certainly got a debate going and a bit of mud slinging!

[Reverandfunk]

Fun starts when yr not?

You really are a knob.

[redcrx]

what will happen if everyone gives up (not that they will) but surely the majority of costs will continue and the funds will have to be found from somewhere. What will they tax?

[MrsT]

I agree that in the unlikely event that everyone gave up at once, the cost would not stop immediately so there would need to be some taxation from somewhere. There are plenty of things to tax, successive chancellors have never been short of imagination. Here's a few: Plastic Bags, Chewing Gum, more on booze, cars etc. It would take a generation I guess before the costs of smoking are negated. However we all know that in reality we are down to the hard core nicotine addicts that can't give up, smokers are hooked they are a captive audience so I guess they'll carry on. Now we should hike the price right up and at the same time crack down on smuggling but that's a different subject.