Tobacco Endgame
“Tobacco endgame” is a concept that goes beyond tobacco control, and aims to ban smoking and end the tobacco epidemic by strengthening tobacco control efforts. Despite no standard definition or approach to eliminate smoking behaviours, countries with an endgame plan commonly aim to reduce the smoking prevalence to 5% or below before a target date and then initiate a total ban on smoking. Aside from strengthening the typical tobacco control measures (e.g. tobacco tax increase, plain packaging and expansion of smoke-free areas, etc.), innovative measures are introduced to reach the endgame target, such as:
- A “Smokefree generation” policy that prohibit the sales of tobacco products to persons born in or after a specific year
- Licensing of retailers/smokers who can sell/purchase tobacco products
- Restrictions on the number and locations of tobacco retailers
- Restrictions on nicotine levels to make tobacco products less addictive
- Prohibition of flavours in tobacco products and other appealing features
- A levy on the tobacco industry based on the sales volume to fund tobacco control
Countries that have announced the tobacco endgame plans are as follows:
| Country | Target smoking prevalence | Target date |
| Ireland | < 5% | 2025 |
| New Zealand | < 5% | 2025 |
| Sweden | < 5% | 2025 |
| Finland | < 5% | 2030 |
| United Kingdom | ≤ 5% | 2030 (England); 2034 (Scotland) |
| Canada | < 5% | 2035 |
| Netherlands | < 5% | 2040 |
| Malaysia | < 5% | 2040 |
Hong Kong has yet formulated an endgame plan or strategy to ban smoking. However, the government has launched the “Towards 2025: Strategy and Action Plan to Prevent and Control Non-communicable Diseases in Hong Kong” with an target to reduce the smoking prevalence by 30% relative to the 2010 prevalence to 7.8% by 2025, in accordance with the “Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases 2013-2020 by the World Health Organization. According to the Thematic Household Survey Report No.75, the smoking prevalence in Hong Kong was 9.5% in 2021, among the lowest in the developed world and closer than the above countries with endgame game plan to the target smoking prevalence.
In conjunction with over 190 representatives of various sectors of the society, COSH introduced the Charter on Tobacco Endgame to jointly advocate for tobacco endgame strategies in Hong Kong and strengthening tobacco control measures. We appeal for reducing the smoking prevalence to 5% or below, and then ban smoking to terminate the tobacco epidemic. Suggested measures included but not limited to (1) tobacco tax increase; (2) expansion of statutory no smoking areas; (3) point-of-sale tobacco product displays; (4) plain packaging; (5) raising legal age of tobacco purchase; (6) reducing attractiveness and addictiveness of tobacco products; (7) license of tobacco sale; (8) legal onus of venue manager for smoking offenses; (9) Tightened enforcement; (10) More resources for smoke-free education and smoking cessation; and (11) Preventing tobacco industry’s interference.