ASH Campaigns

ASH Campaigns

Successful major ASH campaigns

ASH Ireland has played a leading role in all of the major Tobacco Control interventions in Ireland, including the smoke free law, that have reduced tobacco use and improved health for the past 25 years.

ASH Ireland has also campaigned successfully for:

  • The introduction of standardised packaging of tobacco and tobacco products.
  • The introduction of a ban on smoking in cars transporting children under 18.
  • The banning of smoking in all children’s playgrounds.
  • The encouragement of a decision by our third-level institutions to ban smoking in all college campuses.
  • The banning of smoking in all sports stadia, local, regional and national.
  • The introduction of price increases on all tobacco products annually.
  • The reduction of VAT on nicotine replacement patches.
  • The introduction of a 50 cent environmental levy on each pack of cigarettes sold in Ireland.  This levy to be borne by the Tobacco Industry on the “polluter pays” principle relating to tobacco waste.

 

Ongoing ASH campaigns

  • Continue to advocate for further investment, action and research in the fight against tobacco smuggling.
  • Continue to advocate for further investment in programs to encourage smoking cessation, principally at primary care level.
  • Review the implementation of workplace smoking legislation, especially in regard to the on-going efforts of the hospitality sector to circumvent the legislation by means of carefully designed extensions and outside smoking areas.
  • Continue to advocate for litigation against the tobacco industry for recovery of health costs. (Follow US model).
  • Explore information and methodology to highlight the activities of the Tobacco Industry in Irish society (especially in regard to targeting young people).
  • Smokefree playgrounds. Click here to see a list of county councils in Ireland committed to smokefree playgrounds.

 

ASH Ireland deals with calls from the media on an on-going basis and continually engages in media interaction as a way of highlighting issues in regard to smoking and tobacco.  ASH assists members of the general public with general queries and also assists students who are engaged in smoking-related queries in so far as this is possible.

We also work in partnership with other health groups such as the Irish Heart Foundation, ENSP and other groups in Europe and elsewhere in coordinating the fight against tobacco and smoking.