The Fine Gael Spokesperson on Health says Ireland needs to build on its strong anti-smoking regulations by limiting the number of cigarettes sold in a packet to 20.
There is currently a ban on selling packs containing less than 20 cigarettes, but no law on companies selling boxes of 23, 28 or 35.
According to Revenue, sales of these larger packets now account for around 30% of all cigarette sales in Ireland.
Deputy Colm Burke says higher quantity packets result in higher levels of smoking:
"The temptation is there, you're going into a shop to buy a packet of 20 cigarettes, and then you're saying 'no sure I'll buy a packet of 27 or 28. This I think needs to be regulated, and I believe that we need to do more work on this area to help those who are smokers give up smoking.”
