 A pleasure for the poor? Breakfast asked residents in Nottingham |
It might not have been quite so controversial if it hadn't come out of the mouth of the secretary of state for health. Instead, it seems, Dr John Reid may have undone years of health campaigning.
He let slip that he understood that having a cigarette might be one of the few pleasures in life - especially if you're poor, living in bad housing and looking after children on your own.
He's been accused of sending out mixed messages after telling one of Labour's "big conversation" groups that smoking isn't the biggest problem affecting the poor.
Dismissing smoking campaigns as an obsession of the middle classes, Dr John Reid added:
"What enjoyment does a 21-year-old single mother-of-three living in a council sink estate get?
"The only enjoyment sometimes they have is to have a cigarette."
This morning, Breakfast set out to find out whether he's right. We sent our reporter Mike Sergeant to a council estate in Nottingham, to find out what people there think. Many agreed with John Reid's comments: they enjoy smoking, even though they know it's not good for them.
And we debated the issue of smoking and poverty with Professor Carol Black, president of the Royal College of Physicians and Robert Whelan, the deputy director of the think-tank Civitas. We also want to know what you think. You can use this form to e-mail the Breakfast team with your views about smoking
Disclaimer: The BBC may edit your comments and cannot guarantee that all e-mails will be published.
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