HMRC is now testing the nation’s wastewater to work out how much tobacco is being smoked illegally. At a huge cost to taxpayers compared to easier methods like high street enforcement or surveying empty illegal packets….
Taxpayers are shelling out for researchers to visit waterworks around the country, looking for traces of nicotine and other tell-tale metabolites. The idea is to show where smoking is highest and help HMRC decide where to send investigators and raid teams. A one-year Home Office wastewater analysis contract was worth £1.3 million in 2023…
The key facts are already public. Cancer Research UK estimates smokers got through 28 billion cigarettes in 2024, while HMRC records show only 14 billion were sold legally. That leaves roughly 14 billion cigarettes unaccounted for and billions in tax revenue going up in smoke…
Wastewater can tell you how much nicotine people are consuming from a public health perspective, but obviously not whether those cigarettes were bought legally or on the black market. HMRC still has to make a series of assumptions to work that bit out. The evidence is simply sitting in discarded cigarette packets and is visible to enforcement agencies on every high street. HMRC methodology going down the toilet…
Boris spoke to GB News about Labour’s attempts to restrict donations:
“It looks absolutely pathetic. Just because some people want to support one party very generously, Labour kicks up a huge fuss and says they’re going to cap donations.
I just saw Richard Tice on your show just now. I have to say I rather agree with him.
They’ve got huge amounts of money – troughing it from the trade unions. It’s absolutely ridiculous Labour are trying to cap donations.”