Christopher Snowdon

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Dr Christopher John Snowdon is a British author and freelance journalist. He is particularly known as a vocal opponent of government intervention in areas such as tobacco, alcohol, and obesity.

Contents

Early life

Snowdon was born in North Yorkshire in 1976 and studied history at Lancaster University, graduating in 1998.

Career

He has written for the Spiked website, The Daily Telegraph [1] and The Spectator , [2] as well as the Conservative Home website.

Snowdon is "Head of Lifestyle Economics" at the Institute of Economic Affairs, [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] a free market think tank that receives funding from sources such as BP, [8] the gambling industry, [8] British American Tobacco, [9] [10] the alcohol industry, food industry, and sugar industry. [11]

Personal life

He lives in Sussex with his wife and daughter. [12]

Works

His first book, Velvet Glove, Iron Fist (2009), is a history of anti-smoking activity from the fifteenth century to the present day. [13] [14] [15] [16] [17]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobacco</span> Agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana

Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus Nicotiana of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the chief commercial crop is N. tabacum. The more potent variant N. rustica is also used in some countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cigarette</span> Small roll of tobacco made to be smoked

A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhaled via the opposite end. Cigarette smoking is the most common method of tobacco consumption. The term cigarette, as commonly used, refers to a tobacco cigarette, but the word is sometimes used to refer to other substances, such as a cannabis cigarette or a herbal cigarette. A cigarette is distinguished from a cigar by its usually smaller size, use of processed leaf, different smoking method, and paper wrapping, which is typically white.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobacco industry</span> Persons and companies that produce tobacco-related products

The tobacco industry comprises those persons and companies who are engaged in the growth, preparation for sale, shipment, advertisement, and distribution of tobacco and tobacco-related products. It is a global industry; tobacco can grow in any warm, moist environment, which means it can be farmed on all continents except Antarctica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobacco smoking</span> Practice of burning tobacco and breathing the resulting smoke

Tobacco smoking is the practice of burning tobacco and ingesting the resulting smoke. The smoke may be inhaled, as is done with cigarettes, or simply released from the mouth, as is generally done with pipes and cigars. The practice is believed to have begun as early as 5000–3000 BC in Mesoamerica and South America. Tobacco was introduced to Eurasia in the late 17th century by European colonists, where it followed common trade routes. The practice encountered criticism from its first import into the Western world onwards but embedded itself in certain strata of a number of societies before becoming widespread upon the introduction of automated cigarette-rolling apparatus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smoking ban</span> Law prohibiting tobacco smoking in a given space

Smoking bans, or smoke-free laws, are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, that prohibit tobacco smoking in certain spaces. The spaces most commonly affected by smoking bans are indoor workplaces and buildings open to the public such as restaurants, bars, office buildings, schools, retail stores, hospitals, libraries, transport facilities, and government buildings, in addition to public transport vehicles such as aircraft, buses, watercraft, and trains. However, laws may also prohibit smoking in outdoor areas such as parks, beaches, pedestrian plazas, college and hospital campuses, and within a certain distance from the entrance to a building, and in some cases, private vehicles and multi-unit residences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Institute of Economic Affairs</span> Neoliberal think-tank

The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) is a right-wing, free market think tank registered as a UK charity. Associated with the New Right, the IEA describes itself as an "educational research institute" and says that it seeks to "further the dissemination of free-market thinking" by "analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems". The IEA is the oldest free market think-tank in the UK and was established to promote free-market responses to economic challenges by targeting influential academics and journalists, as well as students, in order to propagate these ideas widely. Adopting as its credo FA Hayek's view that "yesterday's dissent becomes today's consensus," the IEA says that it prioritises producing work with a focus on economic insights over partisan politics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fraser Institute</span> Canadian public policy think tank

The Fraser Institute is a libertarian-conservative Canadian public policy think tank and registered charity. It is headquartered in Vancouver, with additional offices in Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal. It has links to think tanks worldwide through the Economic Freedom Network and is a member of the free-market Atlas Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Minchin</span> Australian politician (born 1953)

Nicholas Hugh Minchin is an Australian former politician and former Australian Consul-General in New York, USA. He previously served as a Liberal member of the Australian Senate representing South Australia from July 1993 to June 2011, and a former cabinet minister in the Howard government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Economic Policy Institute</span> American public policy think tank

The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit American think tank based in Washington, D.C., that carries out economic research and analyzes the economic impact of policies and proposals. Affiliated with the labor movement, the EPI is usually described as presenting a left-leaning and pro-union viewpoint on public policy issues. Since 2021, EPI has been led by economist Heidi Shierholz, the former chief economist of the Department of Labor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Institute of Public Affairs</span> Australian public policy think tank

The Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) is a conservative non-profit free market public policy think tank, which is based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It advocates free-market economic policies, such as privatisation, deregulation of state-owned enterprises, trade liberalisation, deregulation of workplaces, abolition of the minimum wage, criticism of socialism, and repeal of Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975. It also rejects large parts of climate science.

FOREST is a United Kingdom smokers' rights group primarily funded by the tobacco industry which campaigns against what it sees as "excessive regulation" of smoking and tobacco products.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicotine marketing</span> Marketing technique

Nicotine marketing is the marketing of nicotine-containing products or use. Traditionally, the tobacco industry markets cigarette smoking, but it is increasingly marketing other products, such as electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products. Products are marketed through social media, stealth marketing, mass media, and sponsorship. Expenditures on nicotine marketing are in the tens of billions a year; in the US alone, spending was over US$1 million per hour in 2016; in 2003, per-capita marketing spending was $290 per adult smoker, or $45 per inhabitant. Nicotine marketing is increasingly regulated; some forms of nicotine advertising are banned in many countries. The World Health Organization recommends a complete tobacco advertising ban.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heartland Institute</span> Conservative and libertarian American think tank

The Heartland Institute is an American conservative and libertarian 501(c)(3) nonprofit public policy think tank known for denying the scientific consensus on climate change and the negative health impacts of smoking.

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) is the name of a number of autonomous pressure groups (charities) in the anglosphere that seek to publicize the risks associated with tobacco smoking and campaign for greater restrictions on use and on cigarette and tobacco sales.

Roger Bate is a British educated economist who has held a variety of positions in free market oriented organizations. His work focuses on solving the problem of counterfeit and substandard medicines, particularly those in the developing world. He also works on US and international aid policy, performance of aid organisations, and health policy in developing countries, particularly with regard to malaria control and the use of DDT. He consulted for the tobacco industry in the mid-'90s, though the extent of this work is disputed. He is currently a fellow of the American Enterprise Institute and the Institute of Economic Affairs, and he was on the board of directors of Africa Fighting Malaria.

Operation Berkshire is the name of a program initiated in 1976 by seven of the world's major tobacco companies aimed at promoting "controversy" over smoking and disease.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Menthol cigarette</span> Cigarette flavored with the compound menthol

A menthol cigarette is a cigarette infused with the compound menthol which imparts a “minty” flavor to the smoke. Menthol also decreases irritant sensations from nicotine by desensitizing receptors, making smoking feel less harsh compared to regular cigarettes. Some studies have suggested that they are more addictive. Menthol cigarettes are just as hard to quit and are just as harmful as regular cigarettes.

Ventilated cigarettes are considered to have a milder flavor than regular cigarettes. These cigarette brands may be listed as having lower levels of tar ("low-tar"), nicotine, or other chemicals as "inhaled" by a "smoking machine". However, the scientific evidence is that switching from regular to light or low-tar cigarettes does not reduce the health risks of smoking or lower the smoker's exposure to the nicotine, tar, and carcinogens present in cigarette smoke.

John C. Luik was a senior fellow of the Democracy Institute. A Rhodes Scholar attached to Hertford College at the University of Oxford, he was a Senior Associate of the Niagara Institute with responsibility for its work in public policy and its Values and Organizational Development programmes." From 1977 to 1990 he taught philosophy and ethics at two Canadian universities, but was dismissed from each for misrepresenting his academic credentials. He acted on behalf of the tobacco industry amongst others and was prominent in criticising the evidence related to the claimed links between passive smoking and cancer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of nicotine marketing</span>

The history of nicotine marketing stretches back centuries. Nicotine marketing has continually developed new techniques in response to historical circumstances, societal and technological change, and regulation. Counter marketing has also changed, in both message and commonness, over the decades, often in response to pro-nicotine marketing.

References

  1. "Christopher Snowdon". The Telegraph. 19 June 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  2. "Christopher Snowdon, Author at The Spectator". The Spectator. 29 August 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  3. "THE INSTITUTE OF ECONOMIC AFFAIRS LIMITED". Charity Commission for England and Wales. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  4. "Why is the UK economy lagging behind the US, Germany and others?". BBC News. 18 February 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  5. "Christopher Snowdon". Institute of Economic Affairs. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  6. "Lifestyle Economics". Institute of Economic Affairs. 6 July 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  7. "christopher snowdon". unfilteredonline.com. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  8. 1 2 Carter, Lawrence; Ross, Alice (30 July 2018). "BP and gambling interests fund secretive free market think tank the IEA". Unearthed. Greenpeace . Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  9. Gornall, Jonathan (15 May 2019). "Big tobacco, the new politics, and the threat to public health". British Medical Journal . 365: l2164. doi:10.1136/bmj.l2164. ISSN   0959-8138. PMID   31092403. S2CID   155102371.
  10. Matthews-King, Alex (16 May 2019). "Big tobacco secretly bankrolling anti-NHS think tank whose bosses donate thousands to Tory leadership contenders, investigation reveals". The Independent . Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  11. Miller, David; Harkins, Claire; Schlögl, Matthias; Montague, Brendan (2017). Impact of Market Forces on Addictive Substances and Behaviours: The web of influence of addictive industries. Oxford University Press. pp. 102–108. ISBN   9780198753261.
  12. "Christopher Snowdon". The Great Debate. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  13. Fitzpatrick, Michael (1 August 2013). "The anti-smoking 'truth regime' that cannot be questioned". Spiked . Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  14. "Anti-smoking activism - Puff by puff, inch by inch". The Economist. 11 June 2009. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  15. "Blowing Smoke at a Ban". New York Times. 31 December 2009. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  16. Lyons, Rob (June 2009). "Puritanism disguised as science". Spiked review of books. Archived from the original on 30 June 2009. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  17. "COP10 - Experts". Taxpayers Protection Alliance . 20 July 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  18. Snowdon, Christopher. "Selfishness, Greed and Capitalism". Institute of Economic Affairs . Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  19. Snowdon, Christopher (10 November 2017). "Killjoys: A Critique of Paternalism". Institute of Economic Affairs . Retrieved 20 September 2023.