UK adults back ban on tobacco marketing to children

The majority of UK adults are in support of legal measures to prevent children from being exposed to tobacco marketing.

Almost 4,100 people were surveyed by Cancer Research UK, with 84 percent of respondents saying kids should not be brought into contact with any form of cigarette advertising, while 79 percent said they believe it is harmful to children.

Additionally, 69 percent of respondents said they think the colourful branding, stylish packet designs and striking logos seen on cigarette boxes make them more appealing to youngsters.

This comes at a time when the government is consulting on whether to introduce plain, uniform packaging for tobacco, in order to dissuade people from taking up the habit.

Last month, the charity launched a campaign called The Answer is Plain backing this move, accompanied by a report citing internal tobacco industry documents suggesting that cigarette packs are specifically designed to appeal to new smokers.

Sarah Woolnough, Cancer Research UK's director of policy, said: "This is about us as a society saying that it is wrong for tobacco … to be marketed to children as though it were a bag of sweets."