The blog post in question still says 'No one has commented yet'. This isn't true because I commented already, but they don't like what I said, clearly.
A telephone poll taken in November and ending three days after the ban came into legal effect in Australia in December is the basis of this claim that plain packaging works. Five hundred and thirty-six smokers from Australia were telephoned (pop 23+ million with smoking rate estimated at 20 per cent). Three-quarters were smoking a plain pack and reportedly enjoyed their tobacco less and thought about quitting more than the quarter that smoked from a branded pack.
And that's it – that is what passes for research and evidence in pursuit of tobacco control.
The comment that they didn't publish:
This law was meant to be about protecting children, not adults. And why is a respected medical journal touting the 'proof' that a policy 'works' in less than a year of its implementation, when it depends on kids being attracted less to smoking and buying less tobacco. Don't tell me it takes less than a year to get reliable information on their perceptions and buying habits – bearing in mind that any purchases will be from illegal sources.Arguments also can be found in The Guardian.
