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GLOBAL GOV’TS: MAKE TOBACCO FIRMS LIABLE FOR SMOKING HARM

Nov 14th, 2016
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http://www.koreatimesus.com/global-govts-make-tobacco-firms-liable-for-smoking-harm/

A global conference on tobacco control has pledged to hold the tobacco industry legally liable for health consequences of smoking and protect public health policies from the influence of tobacco companies.

Representatives from around 180 countries participating in the World Health Organization’s global tobacco control treaty negotiations on Saturday adopted a declaration in which they also vowed to prohibit or regulate the sale of e-cigarettes.

The six-day conference on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, or FCTC, concluded with participating countries agreeing to promote alternative livelihoods for tobacco farmers that would ensure a better future for them.

Public health activists say smoking-related deaths are still rising worldwide, with 80 percent of them expected to occur in developing countries by 2030. The WHO says that without strong control measures, tobacco will kill about 1 billion people in the 21st century.

The more than 1,500 delegates expressed their concern about persistent attempts by the tobacco industry to infiltrate the meetings in order to influence the working and the outcomes of the conference.

The declaration cautioned governments against efforts by big tobacco companies to dilute health policies, subvert measures to restrict tobacco sales and undermine the implementation of the FCTC.

“The long hours of debate and planning has produced a strong road map for global tobacco control for the future,” Vera Luiza da Costa e Silva, head of the convention secretariat, told reporters.

She said the tobacco industry was “determined to undermine and distract us from our goal – to fight against the tobacco epidemic that not only damages health and kills people, but also impoverishes those living in low- to middle-income countries.”

The conference declaration included measures to hold big tobacco companies liable for the health consequences of its products, recover health care costs and facilitate access to justice for victims of tobacco-related diseases.

Since they set down stiff regulations and guidelines in the landmark 2003 FCTC treaty – the first and only global treaty dealing with public health – most of the 180 signatories have ratified it and passed laws restricting tobacco advertising or sales.

Still, many governments remain entangled with powerful tobacco companies, while industry lobbyists continue attempts to stymie efforts to implement anti-smoking laws through bribery, misinformation and even suing national governments for lost profits, campaigners say.

Health activists hailed the decision on legal liability, saying it could set a precedent for holding other industries accountable for environmental damage or public health harms they could cause.

“The tobacco industry is the single largest barrier to tobacco control policies globally – and these negotiations were no exception,” said John Stewart, deputy campaigns director at the Boston-based lobbying group Corporate Accountability International.

Stewart said the firm stand taken by delegates, who stood up to the tobacco industry, had enabled governments to adopt “some of the strongest measures yet to protect millions of people’s lives.”

180 countries adopt landmark decisions on tobacco control

Nov 13th, 2016
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http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/more-news/215250-180-countries-adopt-landmark-decisions-tobacco-control.html

After one week of heated negotiations and intrigues, governments representing nearly more than 90 per cent of the world’s population who attended the seventh session of the World Health Organization’s global tobacco treaty negotiations in New Delhi adopted policies that will protect public health over the narrow interests of the tobacco industry.

These include tools to hold Big Tobacco legally liable for the harms of its products, recover healthcare costs, facilitate access to justice for victims of tobacco-related diseases, and safeguard public health policymaking from the industry at the national level.

Governments unanimously adopted the suite of public health measures over the objections of the tobacco industry. Throughout the negotiations to the treaty, formally the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), the industry tried to undermine the talks via government delegations, industry front groups, lobbying, and other means. Despite these tactics, governments adopted decisions, like advancements on legal liability, that could provide precedent for holding other industries accountable for the environmental and public health harms they cause.

“The tobacco industry is the single largest barrier to tobacco control policies globally—and these negotiations were no exception,” said John Stewart, deputy campaigns director at Corporate Accountability International. “We applaud the delegates that stood up to the industry and rejected their rhetoric. It is thanks to them that governments have now adopted some of the strongest measures yet to protect millions of people’s lives.”

At the negotiations which held from November 7 to 12, governments agreed to expand the expertise and case studies available to file legal and civil suits against Big Tobacco.

The decision, which advances Article 19 of the global tobacco treaty, opens the door for governments to sue the industry and recoup millions of dollars for the health care costs associated with tobacco use. It could also provide precedents for people to pursue legal liability for other industries that affect public health and the environment, like the fossil fuel industry.

To date, a handful of countries have utilized the principles contained in Article 19. For instance, Canadian smokers recently won a $15 billion payout from the industry, after an historic 17-year legal suit.

“At these negotiations, governments said ‘enough is enough’ when it comes to tobacco industry interference in their public health policies,” said Philip Jakpor, Nigeria spokesperson of Network for Accountability of Tobacco Transnationals (NATT). “Together, they advanced policies that will push Big Tobacco out of the way, and let public officials do their jobs: saving people’s lives.”

“For years, the tobacco industry has intimidated countries with threats of legal suits for their common-sense public health laws,” said Hellen Neima, tobacco control advocate from Uganda. “At these negotiations, governments set the stage for the kinds of legal challenges that have the potential to bankrupt the tobacco industry in the years to come.”

Governments also advanced policies to protect public health policymaking from the tobacco industry. The decision, which advances the backbone of the global tobacco treaty known as Article 5.3, will establish a centralized knowledge hub for research and expertise on Big Tobacco’s attempts to water-down policies related to tobacco control. It directly addresses the industry’s long history of interference in public health. For instance, last year, a British American Tobacco whistleblower revealed that the corporation had bribed an FCTC official to represent its interests at negotiations for the Illicit Trade Protocol.

Additional outcomes included

•ensuring that the FCTC Secretariat joins the UN treaty on Business and Human Rights as an observer;
•advancements to the Illicit Trade Protocol and protections against the industry’s use of trade and investment partnerships to undermine public health laws.
•Identifying and advancing means to strengthen implementation of the treaty at the national level.

Will ENDS justify the means?

Nov 13th, 2016
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The global anti-tobacco conference’s move to allow member nations to prohibit or restrict sale of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems provokes an outcry from harm reduction experts

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/will-ends-justify-the-means/article9339440.ece

The global anti-tobacco conference winded down on Saturday toeing a hard line towards e-cigarettes and other vaping devices. The seventh session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) ended with Southeast Asian countries voting for complete prohibition of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) and Electronic Non-Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENNDS) in the region.

The clampdown rationale

The World Health Organisation’s concern stems from the fact that while public health policy has been slow to catch up, ‘vaping’ — a ‘tobacco-free’ version of the cigarette where smokers inhale the vapour through liquid in a vaporiser — has become extremely popular among smokers as a ‘healthier’ option to smoking.

All vaping devices heat a solution called ‘e-liquid’ to create an aerosol; the e-liquid comes in flavours that are dissolved into propylene glycol or/and glycerine. Health organisations maintain that the toxicants generated by e-liquids can vary enormously — even within brands — due to the increased thermal decomposition of e-liquid ingredients with rising applied temperatures in open system devices.

Arguing that new nicotine replacement devices were not a valid substitute for people trying to stop smoking, the FCTC has voted in favour of a regulation that allows member nations to prohibit or restrict sale of ENDS/ENNDS devices. “It now depends on national laws but India is likely to opt for complete prohibition. Other countries might choose to restrict access. India has taken a unified stand against ENDS as there are enough tobacco products in the market already. It will take us years to understand the full effects of ENDS products. There is not enough research and a complete prohibition will help prevent more tobacco-related illnesses,” says a member of the Indian delegation. According to WHO, the global market for ENDS/ENNDS in 2015 was estimated at almost $10 billion.

Sidestepping wider consultations

International harm reduction experts, however, warn that measures to limit access to e-cigarettes will result in nearly a million smokers dying. A recently released documentary film about vaping, ‘A Billion Lives’, has argued that e-cigarettes, whose health risks are far lower, could be useful in saving lives.

Some experts claim the lack of transparent discussions on ENDS could cost lives. “These are closed-door meetings and WHO officials have drafted proposals to ban less harmful alternatives to cigarettes without consultation with many member countries. Instead of an open and transparent discussion exploring the evidence and science of better, safer, non-combustible nicotine delivery products, countries that do not agree with a ban are being excluded from the process and the FCTC is even withholding documents from delegations,” charges Julian Morris, vice-president of The Reason Foundation think tank and harm reduction expert.

Alleging that WHO is giving up its responsibility to save lives by recommending prohibition and restriction on ENDS/ENNDS, Riccardo Polosa, another harm reduction expert, says, “If this is true, it is simply outrageous. If the WHO extinguishes e-cigarettes (ENDS), it will have passed up what is clearly one of the biggest public health innovations of the past quarter century — one that could potentially prevent hundreds of millions of premature deaths. It will also have abrogated its responsibility under its own charter to empower consumers to take control of their own health, something that millions are already doing.”

vidya.krishnan@thehindu.co.in

The government is likely to opt for a complete prohibition of ENDS/ENNDS devices, says a member of the Indian delegation to the WHO FCTC conference

Global conference: Make tobacco firms liable for smoking harm

Nov 13th, 2016
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http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/843833/global-governments-make-tobacco-firms-liable-for-smoking-harm

A global conference on tobacco control has pledged to hold the tobacco industry legally liable for health consequences of smoking and protect public health policies from the influence of tobacco companies.

Representatives from around 180 countries participating in the World Health Organization’s global tobacco control treaty negotiations on Saturday adopted a declaration in which they also vowed to prohibit or regulate the sale of e-cigarettes.

The six-day conference on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, or FCTC, concluded with participating countries agreeing to promote alternative livelihoods for tobacco farmers that would ensure a better future for them.

Public health activists say smoking-related deaths are still rising worldwide, with 80 percent of them expected to occur in developing countries by 2030. The WHO says that without strong control measures, tobacco will kill about 1 billion people in the 21st century.

The more than 1,500 delegates expressed their concern about persistent attempts by the tobacco industry to infiltrate the meetings in order to influence the working and the outcomes of the conference.

The declaration cautioned governments against efforts by big tobacco companies to dilute health policies, subvert measures to restrict tobacco sales and undermine the implementation of the FCTC.

“The long hours of debate and planning has produced a strong road map for global tobacco control for the future,” Vera Luiza da Costa e Silva, head of the convention secretariat, told reporters.

WHO anti-tobacco meet draws to a close

Nov 13th, 2016
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COP7 came down heavily on e-cigarettes or Electronic nicotine delivery systems and electronic non-nicotine delivery systems like waterpipes of hookahs.

http://www.dnaindia.com/health/report-who-anti-tobacco-meet-draws-to-a-close-2272815

The gathering of 180-odd countries to debate on anti-tobacco measures in Greater Noida at the seventh convention of parties (COP7) of World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC) ended on a bitter note. The Head of the Convention Secretariat, Dr Vera Luiza da Costa e Silva said, “Despite all the hard work by the Parties it is sad to see the interest, yet again, being promoted in the room. It is determined to undermine and distract us from our goal—to fight against the tobacco epidemic that not only damages health and kills people, but also impoverishes those living in low to middle income countries.”

COP7 came down heavily on e-cigarettes or Electronic nicotine delivery systems and electronic non-nicotine delivery systems like waterpipes of hookahs. It urged those countries to consider prohibition or regulation of these products that it considers harmful to health.

“Regional and international standards development organizations have begun work on testing and measuring of contents and emissions expected to be over within 3 to 5 years,” said a COP7 release. DNA had reported on November 12 that E-cigarettes are of no use in de-addiction, says WHO. While some countries asked for all the different devices and delivery systems to be regulated under national legislation in the same way as drugs or tobacco products, others called for them to be banned outright.

Article 19, talks about liability against tobacco industry for full or partial reimbursement of medical and other social costs related to tobacco use in their jurisdiction. COP7 called for a stricter implementation of Article 19.

Parties recognize scientific evidence has established that tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke causes death, disease and disability. They adopt the report of the expert group, including a specifically designed toolkit, as a mechanism of assistance to those parties that may require assistance in developing civil liability.

Anti- Smoking campaigners question the financial request from the Ceylon Tobacco Company

Nov 13th, 2016
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The government is accused of making an unethical decision on its fight against tobacco and alcohol consumption by seeking a donation of 500 million rupees from the Ceylon Tobacco company, as per a proposal in budget 2017.

Minister of Finance Ravi Karunanayake requested the donation to be utilized by the Presidential Task Force for the Anti-Smoking campaign.

However, it is stated that this request violates Article 13 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control which states that tobacco industry should not be a partner in initiatives linked to setting up or implementing public health policies.

Sri Lanka is one of the key signatories to this convention.

Speaking to our news team, Director Human Development and Administration at the Alcohol and Drug Information Centre, Sampath de Seram stated that such a request violates the country’s alcohol and drug control act as well.

Need laws to fix liability of tobacco industry: WHO convention

Nov 13th, 2016
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The six-day conference was held at Greater Noida near here in which about 1,500 delegates along with other observers participated.

http://retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/food-entertainment/grocery/need-laws-to-fix-liability-of-tobacco-industry-who-convention/55397578

There is an urgent need to promote alternative livelihoods for tobacco farmers and to come up with legislations to fix liability of the tobacco industry for the harms caused by their products, according to a declaration adopted today at WHO’s global tobacco control conference attended by representatives from around 180 countries.

The Delhi Declaration, adopted on the last day of the seventh edition of Conference of Parties (COP) on World Health Organisation FCTC, also asked the member countries to prohibit or regulate electronic nicotine delivery systems such as e-cigarettes.

The six-day conference was held at Greater Noida near here in which about 1,500 delegates along with other observers participated.

All the member countries were asked to consider developing civil liability clauses in their legislations under article 19 of the WHO-FCTC, which calls for civil liability be imposed on tobacco industry for the harms caused by their product on the people.

The delegates expressed concern at the overall health impact and the long term public health risks of electronic nicotine delivery systems and electronic non-nicotine delivery systems (ENDS/ENNDS), with some even expressing concern at the use of health claims as a marketing tool for such products.

Accusing the tobacco industry of trying to mislead by generating a perception that the Convention is against the farmers, a top official of the Convention Secretariat said it was against the tobacco industry and not the agriculturists.

“We have an obligation to protect vulnerable members of the tobacco production chain — the farmers. But we do that not through encouraging more growing, as the tobacco industry does, but through the development of solid, sustainable alternatives that will promote a better future for farmers and their families,” Dr Vera Luiza da Costa e Silva, head of the Convention Secretariat of WHO FCTC, said at the closing ceremony.

Global meet calls for curbs on e-cigarettes

Nov 13th, 2016
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http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/global-meet-calls-for-curbs-on-e-cigarettes/322515.html

Emerging hazardous effects of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), popularly known as e-cigarettes, came up for intense discussions at the seventh meeting of Conference of Parties to WHO’s anti-tobacco pact ending in calls to ban or urgently regulate the booming sector.

COP 7 meeting, which concluded in Greater Noida today (India was the host), today urged all 180-member nations that have not yet banned importation, sale and distribution of ENDS and electronic non-nicotine delivery systems (ENNDS) to either consider prohibition or regulating these products.

The COP 7 concluded: “Parties called for unbiased, commercially independent and scientifically-based research to ascertain the overall health impact and long-term public health risks of ENDS/ENNDS. Some parties expressed concern at the use of health claims as a marketing tool for ENDS/ENNDS. There was also consideration that all different devices and delivery systems should be regulated under national legislation in the same way as drugs or tobacco products, while others called for them to be banned outright. Further evidence-based scientific research is to be prepared.”

Originally sold as a healthy alternative to tobacco, ENDS/ENNDS market is today estimated at $10 billion and is projected to rise 17 times by 2030. There are over 400 brands of e-cigarettes being marketed online globally.

Though some ENDS look like conventional tobacco counterparts like cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, pipes, or hookahs, others resemble pens, USB memory sticks and larger cylindrical or rectangular devices.

India to preside next edition of COP7 in Geneva in 2018

Nov 12th, 2016
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http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/india-to-preside-next-edition-of-cop7-in-geneva-in-2018/articleshow/55389010.cms

The eighth edition of the Conference of Parties (COP7) to WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) will be held in Switzerland’s Geneva under the presidency of India.

The global anti-tobacco conference is likely to be held in the later part of 2018.

“India will preside the eighth edition of the Convention of Parties of WHO which will be held in Geneva,” said a senior official from the Health Ministry.

The World Health Organisations Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) is the world’s biggest convention to frame the anti-tobacco policies.

According to FCTC website, the COP elects at each regular session its President as well as five vice-presidents. These officers, each representing a WHO region, constitute the Bureau of the Conference of the Parties.

According to Rule 21 of the Rules of Procedure of the COP, they shall commence their term of office at the closure of the session and shall serve until the closure of the following regular session of the Conference of the Parties, including for any intervening extraordinary session, the website said.

The Seventh Session of COP7 to WHO FCTC was hosted by India for the first time and culminated today.

About 1,500 delegates participated in the conference from around 180 countries along with other observers in official relations with the WHO FCTC Secretariat in Geneva.

Vaping Clampdown? | Royal College of Physicians, John Britton Talks COP7

Nov 12th, 2016
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https://regulatorwatch.com/brent/vaping-clampdown-royal-college-physicians-john-britton-talks-cop7/

Is the World Health Organization poised to kill millions of people? Just as vapers in several countries began to feel like events may finally be turning in favor of e-cigarettes as a harm reduction tool, the harsh realities of the global public health movement shattered any optimism.

The World Health Organization is just wrapping its Conference of the Parties to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, known as COP7, in India and according to professor John Britton, Chair of the Tobacco Advisory Group at the Royal College of Physicians in Britain (RCP), the future for vaping looks bleak.

The RCP, Public Health England and the UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies have all endorsed e-cigarettes as a vital tool in the battle to end the tobacco epidemic.

Tune in to this special edition of RegWatch and learn why officials from England’s top public health organizations fear that pending WHO regulatory action on e-cigarettes could kill millions of people.

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