2. 职称英语
  3. Any veteran nicotine addict will testify that fancy packaging plays no role i

Any veteran nicotine addict will testify that fancy packaging plays no role i

游客2023-08-08  23
问题    Any veteran nicotine addict will testify that fancy packaging plays no role in the decision to keep smoking. So, it is argued, stripping cartons of their branding will trigger no mass movement to quit.
   But that isn’t why the government—under pressure from cancer charities, health workers and the Labour party—has agreed to legislate for standardised packaging. The theory is that smoking should be stripped of any appeal to discourage new generations from starting in the first place. Plain packaging would be another step in the reclassification of cigarettes from inviting consumer products to narcotics(麻醉剂).
   Naturally, the tobacco industry is violently opposed. No business likes to admit that it sells addictive poison as a lifestyle choice. That is why government has historically intervened, banning advertising, imposing health warnings and punitive (惩罚性的) duties. This approach has led over time to a fall in smoking with numbers having roughly halved since the 1970s. Evidence from Australia suggests plain packaging pushes society further along that road. Since tobacco is one of the biggest causes of premature death in the UK, a measure that tames the habit even by a fraction is worth trying.
   So why has it taken so long? The Department of Health declared its intention to consider the move in November 2010 and consulted through 2012. But the plan was suspended in July 2013. It did not escape notice that a lobbying firm set up by Lynton Crosby, David Cameron’s election campaign director, had previously acted for Philip Morris International. (The prime minister denied there was a connection between his new adviser’s outside interests and the change in legislative programme. ) In November 2013, after an unnecessary round of additional consultation, health minister Jane Ellison said the government was minded to proceed after all. Now we are told Members of Parliament (MPs) will have a free vote before parliament is dissolved in March.
   Parliament has in fact already authorised the government to tame the tobacco trade. MPs voted overwhelmingly in favour of Labour amendments to the children and families bill last February that included the power to regulate for plain packaging. With sufficient will in Downing Street this would have been done already. But strength of will is the missing ingredient where Mr. Cameron and public health are concerned. His attitude to state intervention has looked confused ever since his bizarre 2006 lament (叹惜) that chocolate oranges placed seductively at supermarket checkouts fueled obesity.
   The government has moved reluctantly into a sensible public health policy, but with such obvious over-cautiousness that any political credit due belongs to the opposition. Without sustained external pressure it seems certain Mr. Cameron would still be hooked on the interests of big tobacco companies. [br] Why has it taken so long for the UK government to consider plain packaging?
选项 A、Prime Minister Cameron has been reluctant to take action.
B、There is strong opposition from veteran nicotine addicts.
C、Many Members of Parliament are addicted to smoking.
D、Pressure from tobacco manufacturers remains strong.
答案 A
解析 推理判断题。定位段首句就提出了问题：采用简易包装为什么花费了如此长的时间呢?接下来一直到第五段第二句则具体描述了这一过程。第五段第三、四句指明原因：要是英国政府意志坚定，这一措施早就实施了，但是坚定的意志正是卡梅伦先生和公共卫生部欠缺的要素。由此可知，卡梅伦首相对于采取普通包装不太情愿，故答案为A)。
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