VICTORIA could go almost smoke-free by 2025 reportedly under a plan backed by 25 of the state’s health groups.
More than two dozen major Victorian health groups are reported to be launching their aim of jointly pushing for stricter anti-smoking laws and more education programs.
Vic Health is leading the campaign to have less than five per cent of Victorians smoking daily by 2025 which has the support of the Australian Medical Association and the Cancer Council, News Corp Australia reports.
Tobacco advertising and promotion would be stopped, TV education campaigns would be rolled out for young people while smoking-related laws would be tightened under the proposal.
“We think it is actually possible to get down to five per cent daily smoking by 2025 — that would virtually eliminate daily smoking,” Quit Victoria director Dr Sarah White told News Corp Australia.
Earlier this week, it was revealed a quick smoke break at work could soon be a thing of the past, with new research revealing the massive cost smokers are having on our economy.
The study, published in The BMJ, found that smokers could cost the economy a massive $388 billion over the course of the working lives of the current population.
The results prompted Cancer Council Queensland to call for a ban on smoking in the workplace to “reduce the burden” of smoking in Australia.
“Having a smoke-free workplace not only improves the health of those that smoke, but this will increase productivity and protect employees from being exposed to second-hand smoke,” Cancer Council Queensland CEO Chris McMillan said.
“A smoke-free workplace also provides a supportive environment for people that smoke to reduce their habit, or quit altogether.”
The results showed that nonsmokers experienced an average of 1.8 unproductive days in the workplace, while smokers had 3.2 days.
Extracted from news.com.au