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Issue:- 19 July  2012

Plain packaging will save lives, say Labour MEPs

LABOUR MEPs are calling on the government to introduce so-called plain packaging for cigarettes as soon as possible, joining with a number of health charities and NGOs to say:- "delays cost lives".

One of our local Euro MEP's Arlene McCarthy commented that:- "Over the last few years the industry has been particularly targeting young women with super-slim, feminine packets which look more like boxes for lipstick or perfume than for a dangerous and addictive drug. Standardising packs would end this practice."

Arlene who is a supporter of the Smoke Free North West Campaign said:- "Two thirds of current smokers started smoking before they were 18 and 83% started before they were 20. Unlike regular smokers, young people who haven't yet tried tobacco are not drawn to it by a physical addiction. Instead they are attracted to tobacco solely by the image and the idea of smoking,"

The government consultation on standardising tobacco packaging; replacing all branding and colours with large pictorial health warnings, was due to close Tuesday, 10 July 2012. However the deadline has now been extended for yet another month and many campaigners now think it is a month to long!

MEP's Arlene McCarthy added that:- "I hope people take advantage of this extra time to share their views with the government, who must take swift action once the consultation closes. Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable death and kills one in two regular smokers.  Tobacco advertising has been banned from billboards, TV, films, newspapers, radio, magazines, racing cars, sportswear and at the point of sale. Plain packaging would simply complete the ban."

The government will be considering national legislation at the same time as the European Parliament revises the internal market rules on tobacco packaging. It is possible that plain packaging could be rolled out across Europe.

MEP, Arlene McCarthy added:- "Having the same rules across all 27 EU countries would simplify trade for retailers and manufacturers, and make the rules easier to enforce in the UK. Most importantly, however, it would protect 500 million European citizens from misleading tobacco marketing."

Do you think changing the standardising tobacco packaging will stop people from smoking?  Let us know your views by emailing us to:- news24@southportreporter.com.

Southport Open Top Bus Tours

THE Merseyside Transport Trust (MTT) is pleased to announce that it will be operating circular open top tours of Southport during the holiday season of 2012. These tours will be provided entirely by volunteers.

Starting from the traditional location of Southport Pier, the tours will operate as a free-of-charge circular service taking in the sights of Southport, on a tour that has proved a popular tourist attraction for many decades.

Picking up where Arriva left off in 2011, the tours are to be operated using historic Leyland Atlanteans that have been operating these tours in past years and are now in preservation; 1449 (GKA 449L) and 1551 (OLV 551M). A closed top vehicle will be substituted in adverse weather conditions.

The tours take in such beautiful Southport attractions as the Marine Lake, Marine Bridge, Royal Birkdale Golf Course, Hesketh Park, Lord Street Boulevard and the Botanic Gardens.

The operation of the tours will commence on Sunday, 29 July 2012 and will operate on every Sunday through to Sunday, 26 August 2012, also including August Bank Holiday Monday, 27 August 2012. Departures are timetabled for 12:00, 13:30 and 15:00 hours from Southport Pier, in front of the carousel.

For more information, consult the MTT’s website.

Staff employed by BMA take second 24 Hour Strike

THE 24 hour strike by GMB members who work for the BMA on Wednesday, 18 July 2012 after an offer was made that was below inflation. GMB members employed by the Doctors organisation at 8 locations across the UK striked. GMB’s action has been taken to coincide with the first full meeting of the newly elected BMA Council at BMA House in Edinburgh, when it will be making decisions on the next steps in the BMA’s own NHS Pensions campaign. The BMA responded to a GMB request for talks to be reopened with an improved pay offer with a meeting on Tuesday, 12 July 2012, but no progress was made. The BMA management said it was considering a 2 year pay offer but the details of the new offer made were revealed late on Thursday and contained no improvement on the 1.5% for this year, and the new proposal of 2.5% from April 2013 was not acceptable as it may not meet inflation. Last month GMB members voted by a majority of 81.2% to take industrial action over the refusal of the BMA to negotiate an improved pay offer for 2012. They rejected a pay offer of 1.5% plus an additional 0.5% for high performers only. Indeed due to the outcome of a grading re-structuring, the offer for 67% of staff is in fact worth under 1.29% and 34% of staff it is worth less than 1.09%. Did this strike affect you? Did you take part in the strike? What are your views on this strike? Email our newsroom with your views, via:- news24@southportreporter.com.

Ring Your Bell and Join Thousands Of People

THE Turner Prize-winning artist and musician Martin Creed is inviting everyone in the UK to take part in Work No. 1197 - All the bells in a country rung as quickly and as loudly as possible for three minutes at 08:12 on 27 July 2012 to celebrate the first day of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Anyone can take part by ringing any kind of bell for 3 minutes - from enthusiastic children with hand bells, bicycle bells and doorbells to experienced change ringing experts of tower bells. To get involved all individuals, communities and organisations are encouraged to register at:- allthebells.com

This unique London 2012 Festival commission is the festival’s biggest community project and offers everyone in the UK the amazing opportunity to be part of a work by a Turner Prize winning artist and London 2012’s history. Martin Creed has said:- "It’s by people and for people. On the morning of the opening of the Games it’s a massive signal that something is happening."

Thousands of people have already registered to take part and the performance has captured the imagination of many organisations and individuals, including The Royal Navy and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, The British Army, The RAF, the National Trust, The Ancient and Honourable Guild of Town Criers, the National Theatre, the Church of England, the Arts Council and Creative Scotland, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, The National Football Museum, The Sports Heritage Network, Discovering Places, The Churches Conservation Trust, the Mayor of London, the Archbishop of Westminster, Dame Evelyn Glennie, Open Morris, The British Federation of Youth Marching Band Organisations, The Girl Guides Association, The Royal British Legion, the Women’s Institute and many more.

All The Bells will be broadcast by the BBC to a potential live audience of over 10 million people across the UK on TV, radio and online - including BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio 2 Chris Evans Breakfast Show and BBC local radio stations.

Anyone can take part by ringing any kind of bell for 3 minutes from experienced change ringing experts of tower bells to enthusiastic children with hand bells, bicycle bells and doorbells. To get involved all individuals, communities and organisations and those interest in taking part are encouraged to register now.

Everyone who signs up will be able to download an exclusive Martin Creed ringtone, Work No. 1372. The Official London 2012 Join In App incorporates a line of Martin’s composition as a shake and play feature.

The cacophonous sound of thousands of bells across the country ringing out at the same time to mark this historical moment will be a thrilling experience and a nationwide celebration.

Bell ringing highlights include:-

Hundreds of people will be ringing bells on HMS Belfast, which will fire its canons in a countdown to 08:12.

The Royal Navy and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary will be participating across the UK and overseas with as many ships, shore bases and naval establishments as possible.

British Embassies around the world will be joining in, including the British Embassy in Beijing, which is inviting the sole survivor of China’s 1948 London Olympics team to ring a bell that was cast to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria.

Whitechapel Bell Foundry, the most famous bell foundry in the world, will be ringing a variety of bells in the courtyard of the foundry and on the pavement outside.

Hundreds of cyclists will ring bicycle bells outside the Transport Museum in Coventry.

Michael Wood, 3 Times World Champion Town Crier, is leading a community bell-ringing event in Beverley, East Riding, Yorkshire, with local schools.

Over a hundred people will be joining The Fruitmarket Gallery in Edinburgh for bell-ringing on the famous Scotsman Steps.

In Skew people will be ringing bells outside Britain's northernmost inhabited house.

600 Girl Guides will all be ringing bells at an Olympic-themed camp in the New Forest.

St Columb's Cathedral, the mother church of the Anglican Church of Ireland, and its Catholic counterpart, St Eugene's Cathedral, in Derry will be ringing in unison.

Tresco Bike Store on The Isles of Scilly will supply bikes for people to ride to the most Westerly church in the UK, and ring bicycle bells alongside the church bells.

Ruth Mackenzie, Director, Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival, said:- "The commission shows the Festival’s commitment to world-class artists and to the values of participation. Martin Creed’s wonderful idea gets everyone involved in the opening day of the Games not just as an audience but as an integral part of the work."

Everyone who signs up will be able to download an exclusive Martin Creed ringtone, Work No. 1372, which features 28 different bell sounds. The Official London 2012 Join In App also incorporates a line of Martin’s composition as a shake and play feature.

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