The Tobacco Bill: A critical step towards reducing annual deaths from smoking

COSATU presented its submission in support of the Tobacco and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill to Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Health this week.

- Solly Phetoe is Cosatu General Secretary.

This is a critical Bill to reduce the number of lives lost every year to lung cancer and tuberculosis, as well as to safeguard the legal tobacco industry, its value chain and jobs from the explosion of the illicit tobacco trade.

Cosatu has championed this long overdue Bill as a critical tool in the campaign to reduce smoking and the exposure of nonsmokers and young people to smoking.

The Federation has engaged extensively on this progressive Bill at Nedlac and now in Parliament.

Whilst we are disappointed it took so many years to reach Parliament, we are pleased it is finally there. It will take some time still to come into law and is likely to receive real push back from certain quarters with vested interests in the tobacco trade, legal and illegal.

Smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer with an estimated 30 000 deaths annually in South Africa and a major contributor to tuberculosis. The resultant costs for healthcare are more than R1 billion annually and estimates of up to 0.9% lost in economic productivity.

The Bill provides many progressive provisions building upon existing pioneering legislation set in place under President Nelson Mandela's administration in 1995.

These include strengthening restrictions on smoking at work. This is important as often despite smoking rooms or spaces existing, workplaces lack sufficient air filter systems to protect workers who do not smoke.

Smokers will be required to smoke at a distance from entrances to workplaces and public buildings as all too often this has been treated as an option with the rights of nonsmokers invariably sacrificed.