SMOKERS HAVE BEEN hit in the pocket, yet again. The price of cigarettes rose by 50c from midnight as a result of Budget 2017, bringing the cost of a 20-pack to about €11.
Cigarettes duties have been increased in every Budget for the past five years. And while some campaigners – notably former Health Minister James Reilly – reckon a pack should cost as much as €20, Governments have to be mindful that the black market tobacco trade could be handed a boost if prices rise to sharply.
But how much would a pack need to cost, to deter the average smoker in Ireland?
We hit the rain-sodden streets of Dublin today to ask. (We could only find one actual smoker willing to talk – but there was no shortage of non-smokers eager to share their opinions).
-Reporting by Daragh Brophy
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