Health campaigners are calling for an “absurd loophole” on tobacco advertising to be closed by changing the law so cigarettes are sold in plain boxes.
The British Heart Foundation (BHF) made the plea after research found that just over 25% of regular smokers aged 16 to 25 thought a branded cigarette pack was less harmful than another based on the packet design alone.
More than three quarters of smokers and non-smokers of the same age group thought selling cigarettes in plain packs, with no colourful branding or logos and larger health warnings, would make it easier for people to smoke less or quit.
More than 2,700 young people were surveyed for the report and 415 of the group were considered to be regular smokers.
Ben McKendrick, senior policy and public affairs manager at BHF, said: “As informed adults we know that smoking is a deadly addiction that kills half of all smokers. But young people are not always fully aware of the risks and the power of branding holds more sway.
“Tobacco advertising is rightly banned in the UK. Yet current packaging clearly still advertises tobacco on the cigarette box.
“It’s an absurd loophole the tobacco industry takes full advantage of to lure in new young smokers. We must close this if we really want to protect younger generations from taking up this fatal habit.”
The BHF is urging the UK Government to follow the example of Australia, where politicians last month agreed cigarettes should be sold in standardised plain packs of the same colour, with no logos or branded imagery.
The Government is due to launch a public consultation by spring 2012 on the issue. The lobby group Forest, Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking Tobacco, argued that the introduction of plain packs would have little impact on the number of young people who start smoking.
Simon Clark, director, said: “There is no evidence that plain packs will make any difference to youth smoking rates. The vast majority of young people are influenced not by packaging but by peer pressure and the fact that members of their family are smokers.
“Tens of millions of people have been exposed to branded cigarette packaging for decades and have never been encouraged to start smoking. To suggest that people are so easily influenced by the sight of a coloured pack is not only patronising, it’s downright offensive.”
