Smokers could increasingly turn to illicit tobacco, which can be sold for as little as half market price, to cut costs, the LGA has warned.
This would hamper council efforts to reduce smoking, and exacerbate existing health inequalities between low-income groups and the wider population, as illicit tobacco is most readily available in poorer communities where smoking rates are disproportionately high.
It also undermines the impact of tobacco tax rises, which have been found to be most effective at encouraging price-sensitive residents to quit.
The sale of cheap, illegal tobacco by rogue traders in shops, private homes and via social media resulted in a loss of £2.3 billion in taxable income in 2019/20.
Imported illegally without duty being paid, illicit tobacco also helps fund organised criminal gangs with strong links to drug dealing, money laundering and people trafficking.
Ahead of the publication of the Government’s review into tobacco control, the LGA has called for investment in smoking cessation services and local trading standards provision to reduce widening health disparities, organised crime and lost revenue for public services.
Trading standards teams play a vital role in protecting consumers from illegitimate and dangerous products, and councils continue to crackdown on illegal and counterfeit tobacco.
Cllr Nesil Caliskan, Chair of the LGA’s Safer and Stronger Communities Board, said: “Councils are a key player in supporting the Government’s ambition of eliminating smoking in England by 2030, through their tobacco control and other public health and support services. However, it is vital this review provides certainty over long-term funding.”
