Conservative MP Esther McVey has been criticised for a social media post in which she quoted a famous Holocaust poem in relation to reports the government could ban smoking in pub gardens and other public outdoor spaces.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, on Thursday, said “more details will be revealed”, when asked if the government was considering a ban.
Responding to the news, Ms McVey, a former Cabinet minister, shared a post on X of Martin Niemöller’s poem, which discusses the failure to prevent the Holocaust during World War Two.
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The post quickly drew criticism, with the Board of Deputies of British Jews calling it an “ill-considered and repugnant action”.
“We would strongly encourage the MP for Tatton to delete her tweet and apologise for this breathtakingly thoughtless comparison,” it posted on X.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting, meanwhile, told Ms McVey to “get a grip”.
Sure, there’s a strong case for alcohol too. But most medical experts over the past forty years or more agree that smoking is by far worse.
Being addicted to smoking as a poor person is not only putting an immense burden on your health (one that you’re going to lose) but on your finances too. I don’t know where you live but here in th UK smoking isn’t exactly cheap. Even if you take the view that you’re an adult and it’s your choice, it still puts a massive burden on the health service. So I’d be favour of you continuing to smoke out of choice if you covered your medical bills for life and didn’t burden the NHS, for example.
I think it’s right that government incentives healthier life choices but sometimes it’s also right that they take firmer action. I feel this is one of those cases. Just like raising the minimum age to buy cigarettes each year until nobody is eligible. That’s not to say they can’t do any of the other educational pieces at the same time.