From 2005, we are delighted to announce that Tobacco Control will come out six times a year instead of four. We have experienced a healthy rise in submissions (up 46% between 2002–3; and up 7% between 2003–4), with no discernable decrease in quality. From January 2002 to September 2004, we received 700 submissions—excluding papers for commissioned supplements. We rejected 58% of these, nearly half of which were rejected without review. Our acceptance rate is not the reciprocal 42%, because currently there are 67 papers either being reviewed or revised, some of which will be rejected. Rejecting papers is the worst task editors must perform. But it is one necessitated by space and cost constraints, and our concern to maintain the journal at as high a standard as possible. The box at the end of this article summarises the 10 main reasons why we reject papers.

We have about 1100 subscribers. However, this figure grossly underestimates the number who read our papers. Included in this number are many institutional subscribers who buy the combined paper journal plus online access package. Web access allows sometimes tens of thousands of staff and students at large universities …