See the numbers: So expensive it becomes for pensioners

It must be more expensive to be a smoker. It believes all political parties, with the exception of the Liberal Alliance and the New Civic. Several experts hav

Ann McDonald
Ann McDonald
14 September 2019 Saturday 19:01
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See the numbers: So expensive it becomes for pensioners

It must be more expensive to be a smoker. It believes all political parties, with the exception of the Liberal Alliance and the New Civic.

Several experts have over for Extra Magazine criticised the government's plans to put the price of cigarettes up from 40 to 50 dollars, which will mainly affect the 40 percent of smokers who are either pensioners or unemployed.

Community - 13. sep. 2019 - at. 07:04 Will raise the price of cigarettes: Røgbombe under pensioners

- For many it will be difficult to get the money to turn to. We already know that the citizens who have it the worst financially, do not purchase prescription drugs. Tobaksafgiften may be a relatively large expense in a household, so it can have a big impact, said Jann Sjursen, chairman of the Council for socially marginalised people.

Exactly how expensive it can be for pensioners, the liberal think tank Cepos rained on.

the Calculation shows that the proportion of lone pensioners may end up spending nearly 20 percent of their monthly available funds on cigarettes, if the price ends up at 60 dollars, such as several parties agree. Comes cigarettes in the future to cost 50 crowns, as the government suggests, the proportion is three percentage points lower.

Fattigdomsforsker and associate professor in the Department of Sociology Jørgen Elm Larsen stated that the increase will hit the socially skewed.

- It will hit hardest at the bottom of the society, provided that the group continues to smoke, noted he.

- It can lead to the poorest smokers give priority to purchase the cigarettes and compensate by buying poorer diet or not to buy medicine. It is a bit of a paradox, that you get sick of smoking but also to spend more money on smoking, he added to the Ekstra Bladet yesterday.

Charlotta Pisinger, professor of tobaksforebyggelse, evaluates to Ekstra Bladet, that an increase of 25 percent is likely to lead to between eight and ten percent of the smokers choose to stop.


Quite different, it seems for the very young smokers, who are the most price-sensitive. According to the national board of Health points study on cigarette consumption among children and young people will decrease by 75 percent if the price of a package is set up for 60 crowns, while the drop is only half, if the price becomes 50. Thus, a significantly more positive effect.

the Liberal Alliance and the New Civic will not raise the price.

the Danish people's Party will let tobaksafgiften follow the general wage and price developments, so a package going to cost 46 to 48 dollars in the coming years.

Conservatives, the Left Enhedslisten and SF: 60 crowns

the Alternative: 80 crowns

The Radical: 90 dollars

During the election campaign aired Mette Frederiksen also the possibility to introduce differentiated price of cigarettes.

- Maybe there will be a possible way in to say we put the prices up for the young people, so they don't start smoking, but that maybe we just protect some of the pensioners who do not have so much money, she explained in P3 in may.

It proved, however, to be impossible to implement in practice, said earlier in the week from general, rasmussen, Morten Bødskov, in response to the folketing.

He stresses, however, that the government is 'aware of the fact that taxes affect the indkomstgrupperne in society differently, and that higher taxes on tobacco, in particular, is an economic burden for the lowest incomes. These terms will be included in the government's consideration of increases in excise taxes on tobacco'.

See also: Smokers must ribbes

--------- SPLIT ELEMENT ---------

It takes smokers, even

Extra Leaf was Tuesday on the streets to hear from some of the older danes, who are affected by a price increase on tobacco. We asked them the following questions:

What do you say to the government's proposal to set the price of cigarettes up to 50 bucks a package?

it Would get you to give up smoking?

What would a pack of cigarettes cost to get you to stop smoking?

Acif Bajramsouski, 78 years of age. Pensioner. Smoking a pack of cigarettes a day.

- If they put the price up to 50 bucks, so I'll try to stop. But it is difficult. Smoking is like a good buddy for me.

- I am a pensioner, and so it is expensive. I have also tried to stop before.

***

- I think it is ridiculous that they put the prices up! Those of us who have smoked all our lives, should be allowed to do it.

I think fucking not, that a price increase would get me to stop. I can actually answer on what it should cost before I stopped.

- the Proposal is a load of crap! But I'm starting to use e-cigarettes, so it makes it somewhat cheaper.

-If it were adopted, would probably just smoke more e-cigarettes. I would smoke 40 cigarettes a day, if I have not used them, but if it cost more than 70 dollars, I would only smoke e-cigarettes.

***

- We smokers are already a hunted people. I think gradually, the politicians decide too much.

- I have already thought of a quit smoking, it IS a bad habit. Not so much because of the price.

- It is hard to say, what a package should cost before I stopped. You say yes every time, they rise, that NOW I stop. I roll sometimes.

***

- If a package is going to cost 50 bucks, so it's fine enough, but I don't think that it's going to have a major impact. Maybe someone will buy fewer cigarettes. It would probably not get me to stop smoking

- For that I had to stop to buy cigarettes legally, then it should probably be 60 dollars.

***

- I think it is very reasonable with a price of 50 dollars. I think that it's going to hit the young more than the old, and it is also the goal.

- It would probably not get me to stop right away. It is difficult, when 20 out of 22 in your class smokes. It is a social thing.

- But the more the price rises the more I will cut down. If the price was doubled, as someone has suggested, I will think much more about it. There will most likely be a black market for it, if you put it so high up.

***

- It would be a bummer for me if the packages cost 50 bucks, but I can well understand the initiative. It will probably do that more young people are smoking less, and it is indeed a good thing. Personally, I would probably not stop smoking.

- When I lived in London, where it cost 70 dollars, I smoked still, but less. If it cost 80 kroner, I would probably not purchase cigarettes as often.

***

- It's immediately positive with this proposal, but I do not believe that it is sufficient. It is a relatively small price increase.

- It wouldn't give me the extra incentive to stop. A price of 70-80 dollars would however give me a really good incentive to stop smoking.

***

- It would not be so violent, if the price only increases by ten crowns. It would be something else if the smoke up to 70-80 dollars.

- I do not think it is enough to get me to stop. You get used to the small increases, but if they cost 70 to 80 dollars it would probably get me to stop.

Updated: 14.09.2019 19:01