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Smokers die sooner and cost the system less. You should get a tax break for smoking. Forcing people's choices is not a net good for society.

by snarfy 12y ago

DanBC 12y ago
> Smokers die sooner and cost the system less. This is only true if you have high taxes on tobacco products. Those high taxes introduce other distortions -- smuggling of tobacco and increased use of counterfeit product. Smuggling is sometimes done by criminal gangs. Counterfeit product is considerably more harmful than actual products. The reason we want to stop people from smoking has little to do with the fact that they die earlier, but that they live for years with reduced quality of life and that they harm the health of their children.
- snarfy 12y ago
  Actually, it's true without any tobacco taxes. http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.0050029 http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fj... >Because of differences in life expectancy, however, lifetime health expenditure was highest among healthy-living people and lowest for smokers.
- crdoconnor 12y ago
  >This is only true if you have high taxes on tobacco products. Those high taxes introduce other distortions -- smuggling of tobacco and increased use of counterfeit product. It also introduces other "distortions", like fewer people smoking, especially kids. http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0146.pdf http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0146.... But, y'know. Free market uber alles.
  - DanBC 12y ago
    I'm in favour of higher tobacco prices! But the UK spends about £8bn treating smoking related illness and gets £12bn from excise duties and we have much higher rates on tobacco products. The UK taxes on cigarettes are high. About 77% of the price of a pack of 20 is tax. > This is, according to the Treasury, equivalent to more than 2 pence on the basic rate of income tax or over 11 pence on the top rate of income tax. On a typical pack of 20 premium cigarettes the total tax burden of £6.17 ($9.66) ccounts for 77% of the recommended retail price (RRP) of £7.98 ($12.50) http://www.the-tma.org.uk/policy-legislation/taxation/ http://www.the-tma.org.uk/policy-legislation/taxation/ The highest rate in the US is $6.16 (£3.19) (although most places in US have much lower tax rates). http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0097.pdf http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0097.... When people smuggle cigarettes to sell illegally they don't care about minimum age laws, so you get children smoking counterfeit product: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2123054.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2123054.stm > Many are being bought by schoolchildren, according to trading standards officers in the borough of Camden, north London. Counterfeit tobacco is a recurring problem in the UK. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-16786358 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-16786358 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4096911.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4096911.stm http://bbc.co.uk/news/health-28940681 http://bbc.co.uk/news/health-28940681

Smokers die sooner and cost the system less. You should get a tax break for smoking. Forcing people's choices is not a net good for society.

by snarfy 12y ago

Smokers die sooner and cost the system less. You should get a tax break for smoking. Forcing people's choices is not a net good for society.

DanBC 12y ago

> Smokers die sooner and cost the system less. This is only true if you have high taxes on tobacco products. Those high taxes introduce other distortions -- smuggling of tobacco and increased use of counterfeit product. Smuggling is sometimes done by criminal gangs. Counterfeit product is considerably more harmful than actual products. The reason we want to stop people from smoking has little to do with the fact that they die earlier, but that they live for years with reduced quality of life and that they harm the health of their children.

snarfy 12y ago
Actually, it's true without any tobacco taxes. http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.0050029 http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fj... >Because of differences in life expectancy, however, lifetime health expenditure was highest among healthy-living people and lowest for smokers.
crdoconnor 12y ago
>This is only true if you have high taxes on tobacco products. Those high taxes introduce other distortions -- smuggling of tobacco and increased use of counterfeit product. It also introduces other "distortions", like fewer people smoking, especially kids. http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0146.pdf http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0146.... But, y'know. Free market uber alles.
- DanBC 12y ago
  I'm in favour of higher tobacco prices! But the UK spends about £8bn treating smoking related illness and gets £12bn from excise duties and we have much higher rates on tobacco products. The UK taxes on cigarettes are high. About 77% of the price of a pack of 20 is tax. > This is, according to the Treasury, equivalent to more than 2 pence on the basic rate of income tax or over 11 pence on the top rate of income tax. On a typical pack of 20 premium cigarettes the total tax burden of £6.17 ($9.66) ccounts for 77% of the recommended retail price (RRP) of £7.98 ($12.50) http://www.the-tma.org.uk/policy-legislation/taxation/ http://www.the-tma.org.uk/policy-legislation/taxation/ The highest rate in the US is $6.16 (£3.19) (although most places in US have much lower tax rates). http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0097.pdf http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0097.... When people smuggle cigarettes to sell illegally they don't care about minimum age laws, so you get children smoking counterfeit product: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2123054.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2123054.stm > Many are being bought by schoolchildren, according to trading standards officers in the borough of Camden, north London. Counterfeit tobacco is a recurring problem in the UK. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-16786358 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-16786358 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4096911.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4096911.stm http://bbc.co.uk/news/health-28940681 http://bbc.co.uk/news/health-28940681