The pogrom continues
James Fatso Reilly has finally nailed his colours to the mast.
Minister seeks tobacco-free Ireland
This dangerous idiot is abusing his position of power to force his personal prejudices in a vendetta against Irish smokers.
So far the measures introduced into this country have had no effect whatsoever. After the smoking ban we had a total ban on advertising, a total ban on the display of tobacco products, a ban on packets of 10 cigarettes, an almost total ban on vending machines and lurid images on all tobacco products. The price of tobacco products is also the highest in Europe, yet smoking rates remain the same, if not higher. All these measures have achieved is to make Ireland a haven for tobacco smugglers, and to decimate our hospitality industry.
Einstein is quoted as saying that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Reilly is piling ineffective measure upon ineffective measure and is expecting different results.
How he expects to achieve his goal of a tobacco-free Ireland is anyone’s guess. Banning smoking in public? Banning smoking in cars? Doubling the price of tobacco? The only reason there is such high compliance with the smoking ban is that business owners are forced to police smoking on their own premises. Such tactics can’t work in public areas, so I can guarantee that it would be almost impossible to enforce a ban. Increasing the prices will just increase the smuggling trade. He has already stated that we are to be graced with “plain packs” despite the UK having the sense to drop an idea that has no basis or foundation and is based entirely on faulty logic.
Supposing Reilly is successful, where is he to make up the billions he currently receives from Excise Duty? How is he going to explain to the hard pressed tax payer that despite the lack of smokers, the hospitals are still full of people suffering from “smoking related” diseases?
James Reilly is a dangerous man. He is abusing his position to further his obsession. He has no mandate other than his own twisted logic. He has become the Heinrich Himmler of the Anti-Smoker Movement.
The one ray of hope is that he will be long gone from power come 2025.
"Ireland's smoking population is currently 29% – well above the average among OECD countries at 21%".
Not very successful so far then is he!!
29% and rising! The fuckwit can't see beyond his own petty obsession to the damage he is doing, not only to trade but to revenue as well. The only people who gain from all of this are the criminals.
Six years ago I had occasion to assist the driver of a huge articulated truck, he was lost and could not find the local agribusiness factory. He was Spanish and the English road signs were so much mumbo-jumbo to him. I guided him to his destination and he rewarded me with two 200 sleeves of cigs! Very nice!
For the next year or so he'd give me a call every couple of weeks, I'd meet him outside the agribusiness factory and I'd purchase, at extremely reasonable rates, another couple of sleeves of fags. Nowadays, however, this owner/driver of the truck, and his two owner/driver brothers now deal with middlemen as that is the easiest way of their being able to off-load the thousands of fags they bring in on every trip. I am very lucky in that my Spanish friend has not forgotten me. The increase in his *undeclared* cargo shipments means that he can now offer me fags for a tad under £2 per pack of 20 (mate's rates, of course).
His own country is economically knackered and he can make more from his *illicit* shipments into England than he does from his delivery of Spanish produce to England and his delivery of English produce to Spain. He's hoping that the 'war' against fags in England continues!
Does he realise that by simply diverting to Ireland he can at least double his profits?
For comparison, £2 = around €2.30
Price of 20 fags here? €9.40 Work out the profit on that little number!
Aye GD,
But his *legal* business is with an agribusiness here in England. He's still making a fortune.
I reckon he and his two brothers are bringing in half a TON of fags per month all told.
And in the meantime, our "health" minister and his pharma backed pals insist there is no evidence whatsoever that high prices encourage smuggling? I honestly don't know how they can say that with a straight face.
Reporting from the Dublin suburbs…
It's quite difficult to find anyone around my way who smokes legit cigarettes. The going rate is €40 for 200, but some people pay €45. It's still less than half-price. There's never a shortage of supply.
Quality is an issue. Think of the standard set by Gold Bond and Richmond back in the late 70's, then drop it a notch. I've been rudely awoken from my daydreams by an instantly-igniting cigarette butt with a one-inch flame on it dangling from my lip in the recent past. I finished that shit in a hurry. Didn't need to wipe.
At the end of the day it's still cheap fags, and they do the job. You could argue too that there's a certain swagger that comes with smoking an illegal cigarette, doubly so if you make a joint out of it like I do, but nothing else can ever beat the knowledge that you're helping to make Fatso look more stupid with every puff.