'Quit smoking vouchers' criticised
Updated on 22 January 2009
An MP has said an incentive scheme that offers pregnant women a £100 reward to stop smoking was providing "pocket money for bad behaviour".
North East Essex NHS Trust said it hoped to tempt expectant mothers to kick the habit by offering shopping vouchers in return.
Women will receive £20 after stopping smoking for a week, a further £40 after quitting for a month and another £40 if they give up for year.
The pilot scheme, which offers vouchers which can be used at east of England Co-op stores, is targeted at women in the Harwich and Colchester areas.
Douglas Carswell, Conservative MP for Harwich, said: "There's not a mum or dad in the country who doesn't know smoking is very bad for unborn children. The question is, why are we committing to a scheme that provides pocket money for bad behaviour? People shouldn't be smoking in the first place."
Mr Carswell, whose wife Clementine is due to give birth to their first child in March, added: "I've got real reservations about how you police the scheme. It could attract people who don't smoke to come along and say they've given up."
But Bob Russell, Liberal Democrat MP for Colchester, backed the idea. "It's desperately sad that people need an incentive like that," he said. "But if it results in one mother giving up smoking during pregnancy then the £100 will be money well spent in terms of her health and the health of her baby."
The trust said carbon monoxide testing would be used to confirm the women were not smoking before the vouchers were issued.
It said smoking during pregnancy could lead to complications during labour, as well as an increased risk of miscarriage, premature birth and stillbirth. For the baby, it can result in issues such as lower birth weight, slower growth and a higher chance of cot death, the trust said.
Sue White, co-ordinator of the trust's stop smoking service, said: "We hope by offering this added incentive of shopping vouchers it could make the difference with some women between kicking the habit or carrying on smoking. Our team already offers a great deal of support to women who want to give up and that support will, of course, continue. Women will be able to sign up to the pilot up until March 7."
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