They are part of a 1m programme for 1999-2000 to put into effect in Wales the policies set out in the Government White Paper Smoking Kills . Funding for these initiatives is in addition to the 500,000 allocated for new smoking cessation initiatives by the five regional health authorities in Wales, announced by Jane Hutt in July. This would aim to extend the provision of smoke-free areas in social and entertainment venues, and also seek to influence organisations beyond the hospitality sector. Sixteen people in Wales will die today because of smoking.
Smoking is the single biggest cause of preventable illness in Wales today.
Apart from the human misery tobacco causes, smoking also imposes a huge burden on the Welsh economy. These measures provide a combination of approaches that have been shown to be effective, together with investment in research into, for example, young people's awareness of tobacco promotion, and pilot projects, such as a smoking cessation initiative among adolescents. These initiatives demonstrate our commitment to wide-ranging action to combat the smoking epidemic in Wales.