UK Health Secretary: Let the poor smoke
John Reid, plainspoken Health Secretary of the United Kingdom, has landed himself in hot water over his recent statements on smoking. There is a growing pressure for Britain to follow the example of Ireland and Norway and ban smoking in pubs and restaurants, but Reid considers the smoking ban debate an "obsession of the middle classes."
The Health Secretary, who himself had a 60-a-day habit until 18 months ago, said: "I just do not think the worst problem on our sink estates by any means is smoking- - but that it is an obsession of the learned middle class.
"What enjoyment does a 21-year old single mother of three living in a council sink estate get? The only enjoyment they have is to have a cigarette." Mr Reid made the comments-amid mounting pressure on ministers to introduce a tough new ban on smoking in public places.
Anti-smoking groups in Britain are outraged, but then outrage is the normal mood of anti-smoking activists to begin with.
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