Burning money

[JMLanders]

You don't value money, and waste your cash on things that are immaterial to yourself. What is it that you blow what? upwards of £200 a week on, when I get less than £40 a week to live on, that's bills, food etc, for you to slag off the unemployed? A packet of rolling tobacco goes a long way. This has got to be the most 'up myself', and self rightous post I ever saw.."Ohh look at me, I'm better than you", I'm alright jack, lets slag off the jobless.

Jeez!

I can see where you're coming from on this, but you are mistaken. I'm not "slagging" anyone off I genuinely don't understand how anyone affords the cost of smoking, especially when they have such a small amount of disposable income to pay rent maybe, run a car, keep fed and clothed, maybe look after the kids, and have some social life too I was basing it on people on low income which includes the vast majority of the unemployed (in spite of what some on here suggest ). And we're not talking about a pouch of loose tobacco either - I'm looking at "ordinary" cigs at nigh on £6 a packet.

This isn't a class war

So, with respect, you are in error in your assumption of my motives.

 

[Inky Pete]

Don't knock it, that £6 a packet pays for far more of the NHS budget than smoking illnesses will ever cost.

Total tax revenue from tobacco, £10 billion - tax revenue

Total cost to NHS of all smoking related illnesses, £3 billion - NHS cost (this figure includes all cases of all illnesses which have been related in any way to smoking as a risk factor, regardless of whether the individual cases are in fact caused by smoking)

As a non-smoker you're getting a £7+ billion per year free ride.

Interestingly, tobacco revenues have been falling slightly in real terms over the past 8 or 9 years. If successive governments continue to try and price smokers out then get ready to start finding that £7 billion out of your own pocket!

 

[JMLanders]

Don't knock it, that £6 a packet pays for far more of the NHS budget than smoking illnesses will ever cost.

Total tax revenue from tobacco, £10 billion - tax revenue

Total cost to NHS of all smoking related illnesses, £3 billion - NHS cost (this figure includes all cases of all illnesses which have been related in any way to smoking as a risk factor, regardless of whether the individual cases are in fact caused by smoking)

As a non-smoker you're getting a £7+ billion per year free ride.

Interestingly, tobacco revenues have been falling slightly in real terms over the past 8 or 9 years. If successive governments continue to try and price smokers out then get ready to start finding that £7 billion out of your own pocket!

I've metnioned this elsewhere, but lets no forget the additional saving through not having to pay out pensions for such long periods too, due to decreased life expectancy.

Anyway, I'm not knocking it, I'm just curious as to how people afford it.

 

[Inky Pete]

As others have said, it's a question of priorities and lifestyle choices.

Travel agent holidays vs. last minute teletext deals.
Branded goods vs. own brand.
Nice restaurant vs. Happy Eater.
Next/Marks & Spencer vs. Matalan/George.

It all adds up.

 

[joinerjohn]

People who smoke (which is quite legal) cause the government to be in a win win win situation.

As has been stated before many times on forums, They die earlier, don't collect pensions, pay heavily through direct taxation of the product.
Forget all the government advice about getting people to stop. If the truth's known, the government have absolutely no wish for everyone to pack up.

Same with drinking. Notice how they are on about the sales of cheap booze? Read between the lines, They don't want to discourage people from drinking!
They do however want to increase the cost of alcohol either through minimum pricing or by raising duty. The income from alcohol duty far outweighs the cost to the government of problems associated with drinking.

Between the government and the greedy breweries, they are causing the slow death of the local pub. Breweries make more money putting their product into a can than they make by putting it into a barrel/ keg. This is the reason they can sell it so cheap to supermarkets etc.

Successive governments have all raised duty on alcohol above the normal rate of inflation. When budget time comes around, the chancellor will tell you that he's raising beer by 1p or 2p a pint.

By the time the breweries add their bit to it, we are lucky if it goes up by only 10p over the bar.

It's no good blaming landlords of pubs either, The price goes up even in managed establishments.

 

[joinerjohn]

As for holidays, it's not always the case that you can get them cheaper off teletext. I had a look on teletext last year for a holiday in Tenerife. Phoned up as they were advertising a week S/C for £170 per person.

When I got through, they said all those ones had gone. " I sold the last one a few minutes ago, however we can get you into the same apartments , on the same flight, but it's an extra£50 per person."

Yeah right.

I went to my local coop travel agency the next day and told them " I want a holiday in Tenerife, named apartments, transfers, in flight meal, etc."
Told them how much I had budgeted for,,,, 5 minutes later, I'd booked the exact same as advertised on teletext for only £142 per person.

 

[Inky Pete]

A minimum unit price for alcohol (which I'm not in favour of at all, by the way) would actually help pubs.

It would push up the cost of low priced supermarket alcohol but not affect pub prices as these are already well above any realisitic minimum price threshold.

The problem with minimum unit price comes in the way it would affect different drinks differentially. Alcopops, which is what the kids are all getting blotto and causing trouble on, are already quite expensive compared with the alcohol they contain and would not see their prices rise at all. A cheap £4 bottle of wine such as me and the Mrs. might share after a hard day at work, however, could easily double in price.

 

[JMLanders]

People who smoke (which is quite legal) Cause the government to be in a win win win situation.

And also with reference to drinking...

As joe-90 would point out, it's not the government who "win", it's all of us who benefit from the taxation.

Which is why I suspect that the situation whereby these johnny foreigners who come and claim benefit etc etc does in fact contribute more (as an aggregate) in some way or another towards the financial advantage of the country.

The exact analogy is that ideally we'd love to take all the money raised in taxation in booze and cigs and use it to the common good, and deny any expensive medical help for those made ill by those who have contributed in this way by their lifestyle. But you have to take the rough with the smooth. I digress - sorry

 

[Inky Pete]

As for holidays, it's not always the case that you can get them cheaper off teletext.

Depends entirely on how last minute you're looking, whether it's school holidays, and how flexible you're willing to be on destination/flight times/accomodation.

We did a week in Sharm el Sheik last year for under £150 each half board.

 

[JMLanders]

Cigarettes are cheaper abroad too

 

[Inky Pete]

There you go then.

Easyjet to Benidorm.

2000 fags to bring back.

Holiday paid for out of the saving.

 

[JMLanders]

There you go then.

Easyjet to Benidorm.

2000 fags to bring back.

Holiday paid for out of the saving.

It's a bargain.

A friend of mine (who lived in Newcastle upon Tyne) used to drive to dover and take a ferry to France. He'd wine and dine and stay overnight in a hotel. Then he'd stock up with booze and cigs. He calculated (accurately, 'cos he's a bit odd like that) that the money he saved in booze covered the cost of the whole trip (petrol, ferry, food, drink, hotel).

I did try to point out to him that if he didn't smoke or drink, then he'd save a whole load more, but to no avail.

 

[oompah]

There you go then.

Easyjet to Benidorm.

2000 fags to bring back.

Holiday paid for out of the saving.

If you don't smoke then you can afford Ibiza

 

[JohnD]

People who smoke (which is quite legal) cause the government to be in a win win win situation.

As has been stated before many times on forums, They die earlier, don't collect pensions, pay heavily through direct taxation of the product.

Another good reason for legalising heroin and crack, so it can be sold in licenced premises, and taxed.

 

[Lincsbodger]

Don't knock it, that £6 a packet pays for far more of the NHS budget than smoking illnesses will ever cost.

Total tax revenue from tobacco, £10 billion - tax revenue

Total cost to NHS of all smoking related illnesses, £3 billion - NHS cost (this figure includes all cases of all illnesses which have been related in any way to smoking as a risk factor, regardless of whether the individual cases are in fact caused by smoking)

As a non-smoker you're getting a £7+ billion per year free ride.

Interestingly, tobacco revenues have been falling slightly in real terms over the past 8 or 9 years. If successive governments continue to try and price smokers out then get ready to start finding that £7 billion out of your own pocket!

Dont you love lies, damn lies and statistics............


according to the NeLM and the British Heart Foundation, the DIRECT cost of smoking to the NHS is currently £5.5 billion a year, and this DOESNT include indirect costs (e.g. lost productivity, disease caused by passive smoking, loos of use of beds to non smokers). In total is likely to vastly exceed the revenue from tobacco. Furthermore, most of the research this money is spent on wouldnt hav eto be spent if not for smoking, because most of it is for diseases where smoking is the primary cause.

So, no, the non smokers dont get a 'free ride', you just clog up our hospital beds with your self inflicted smoking related illnesses.

http://www.nelm.nhs.uk/en/NeLM-Area/News/2009---June/09/Smoking-related-disease-costs-NHS-5bn/