By July 2007, the ban on smoking in public spaces and workplaces in the UK was in full force. Since then, there has been a 20% decrease in heart attacks and other cardiac conditions relating to smoking. Public health experts say the ban is the greatest UK public health achievement of the 21st century!
Deborah Arnott, chief executive of ASH (Action on Smoking and Health), said:
The smoking ban rightly has top ranking as the most important public health achievement of the 21st century, and ASH is proud to have played a role in this. Smoking is no longer part of most people’s daily lives and politicians of all parties now share [our] vision of bringing smoking to an end. Indeed, the Conservative government has given the tobacco industry an ultimatum to make smoking obsolete by 2030.
As wonderful as this achievement is, smoking still kills more people than the next six preventable causes of mortality combined. Of those that do die, they tend to be among the poorest and most disadvantaged in society. Therefore, Arnott implores even stricter regulation and a revive in funding for preventative programs, as well as those that help smokers quit.
The smoking ban was voted the greatest public health achievement by a sample of Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH)’s 6,500-strong membership, followed by an expert panel of 33 senior public health professionals.
The rest of the list includes the sugar levy on soft drinks in second place, followed by several other notable achievements. The sugar levy on soft drinks was introduced in 2017. A Public Health England report showed that it was so effective it led to a 28.8% fall in the amount of sugar contained in sugary beverages.
The third greatest achievement is the 2010 Marmot review into health inequalities and understanding of the social determinants of health. Sir Michael Marmot, the author of the review, warned that higher taxes on the rich might be needed to tackle widening inequality.
The fourth is the impact of Sure Start children’s centers, particularly from the year 2000 to 2010 – after which the coalition government came to power and funding was cut.
At fifth comes minimum unit pricing on alcohol in Scotland.
Sixth is the HPV vaccination for girls and boys. The vaccine for boys was introduced in 2019.
Seventh is the reduction in homelessness from 2003 to 2009, after which the conservatives entered government, and the reduction stopped.
Eighth is the decriminalization of abortion in Northern Ireland.
Shirley Cramer, RSPH chief executive, said:
We spend so much time discussing what needs to be done – and rightly so – but sometimes it is also important to reflect on how far we have come. This ranking really shines a light on the fantastic and inspiring progress that has been made through public health in the last two decades, and unambiguously makes the case that prevention is better than the cure.
As we look ahead at everything that needs to be done – while analyzing today everything we’re doing wrong that needs to be rectified for a better future – it’s soothing to know we’ve done good in the past, and so there is a lot of hope for tomorrow.
