BUTTS AND BUCKS

I attended a recent meeting where two of the topics discussed, and voted on, were the ethics of pension fund investments in the tobacco industry, and whether or not payday loan companies should be permitted to operate. I voted against both motions to ban them, and I want to make myself absolutely clear; I abhor both the habit of smoking, and the ethos of payday loan companies, having suffered indirectly at the hands of both.

Despite my own life long abstinence, my entire family have always been heavy smokers, up to 60 a day at one point. It seems ironic that it is I, as a result of inhaling second hand smoke, who has suffered from lung problems for most of my life. A key contributory factor to the early death of my brother, to whom I was very close, by suicide, turned out to be the result of gambling debts, and trying keep up with extortionate loan repayments due to money problems.

However, I cannot ignore the fact that both the sale of tobacco and the ability to borrow money, albeit from unscrupulous lenders, are both legal activities; at the moment. Whether or not I agree is another matter altogether.

I’ve heard all of the arguments over health issues surrounding smoking, and the cost to the NHS, but if we are to take that stance where will it all stop?

Will we be barred from eating chocolate, taking up dangerous sports, driving fast cars?

Will pension funds be prevented from investing in pharmaceutical or energy companies, just for starters?

Yes, there are many children and adults in our society who are vulnerable, but playing the interfering ‘nanny state’ card will not address the underlying causes of why people, of their own free will, continue to do things that at heart they know will be detrimental to their health.

People start to smoke for all sorts of reasons, peer pressure, relief of stress, because they like it…. and borrow money for just as many; either they’ve spent beyond their budgets, or they’ve suffered a financial catastrophe and need money quickly, at any cost.

It’s not for me to judge.

Besides, as with alcohol, if the government felt that strongly about it, why not ban the sale of tobacco altogether? It’ll never happen, as without it the chancellor’s coffers would be severely depleted. Playing devil’s advocate, one could argue that it is the tax paid on the purchase of cigarettes that contributes heavily to future NHS care for smokers.

We can’t have it both ways. What we need is informed education, not lecturing, or a big stick to beat us all with.