Question

Is smoking cigarettes beneficial for their own countries Economy? (2-3 paragraphs)

Answer 1

The economic benefits of smoking to the country far outweigh the harmful effects. Rather than being a drain on healthcare resources, smoking actually saves the country more than £100m ($140m) a year because of the premature death of smokers. The early death of smokers saved the government up to £21.5m on health care, pensions, and housing for elderly people in 1999. Tobacco is one of the US' oldest and most profitable industries. Domestic sales alone exceed $45bn annually.

Tobacco money also generates a sizeable chunk of the cash that makes up the federal budget. The US Treasury is estimated to have pocketed $118.6bn in tobacco taxes in the past 10 years. The US government makes seven times more money from the sale of a pack of cigarettes than a cigarette maker does.

In the UK, the tobacco industry generated over £10bn in tax revenue in 1998, enough to pay for three quarters of the Education and Employment Budget.

The industry directly employs 9,800 people and supports about 138,500 other jobs, according to the UK's Tobacco Manufacturers Association.

Tobacco growing is a key element of the economy in many developing countries in Africa and South America,

All human activities carry costs that have to be weighed against their benefits. Risk to limb or life is merely a type of cost that will occur with a probability lower than one but higher than zero.

Cigarettes definitely benefit the economy but one also has to bear the adverse effects smoking has on ones lie.