Nicola Roxon unveils the new plain cigarette packs. Picture: Alan Pryke Source: The Australian
December, 2011:
EXCISE DUTY TABLES – Part III – Manufactured Tobacco
DOWNLOAD FULL PDF : excise_duties-part_iii_tobacco_en
FEDERAL and state governments could take big tobacco to court, seeking compensation for smoking’s health-care costs.
Two international tobacco giants have launched billion-dollar legal action, seeking the suspension of plain packaging laws that will see all cigarettes dressed down in drab green packaging.
Two more companies will begin action in coming days.
But the states may mount their own court challenge within months.
And today in Melbourne, Commonwealth lawyers and public-health and law experts are to meet veteran anti-tobaccocampaigner Matthew Myers, who helped US states claim about $206 billion in health-care compensation from tobaccofirms.
He will discuss his role in the US Master Settlement Agreement, which awarded the compensation, and forced cigarette companies to change their marketing and pay for a $1.5 billion anti-smoking campaign.
The settlement also forced the disclosure of previously secret documents held by the companies.
Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon said the Government was readying itself for a fight and wanted to arm itself with the lessons learned overseas.
“I am looking forward to having him here to pick his brains on the strategies that they used in the US to hold tobaccocompanies accountable for the costs that governments pick up from tobacco-related disease,” Ms Roxon told the Herald Sun yesterday.
The US experience would help Australian jurisdictions consider what options they might pursue, she said.
Smoking kills more than 15,000 Australians a year.
The unhealthy habit costs the nation at least $31.5 billion in health care.
Mr Myers will also advise on big tobacco’s likely game plan to tear down plain packaging laws, in a sign Australia’s world-first laws are grabbing global attention.
“This is a fight that many other countries around the world have been in for different tobacco-control measures,” Ms Roxon said.
“So it’s important to talk to the experts from around the world about the tactics that we can expect from big tobacco and the strategies that they might have successfully used.”
Environmental Tobacco Smoke’s Impact on Children Exposed in New Online Video
Source: Cochrane & Associates, LLC
The IAQ Video Network produces another educational video about environmental dangers due to exposure to indoor air quality contaminants.
Phoenix, AZ, December 12th, 2011 — Today, the IAQ Video Network and Cochrane & Associates announced the release of another online video to help educate the public about issues that may impact their health. The latest educational video discusses the threat to children’s health due to environmentaltobacco smoke (ETS).
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “Environmentaltobacco smoke is the mixture of smoke that comes from the burning end of a cigarette, pipe, or cigar, and smoke exhaled by the smoker. It is a complex mixture of over 4,000 compounds, more than 40 of which are known to cause cancer in humans or animals and many of which are strong irritants. ETS is often referred to as ‘secondhand smoke’ and exposure to ETS is often called passive smoking.’
“Infants and young children whose parents smoke in their presence are at an increased risk of lower respiratory tract infections, including pneumonia and bronchitis, and are more likely to have symptoms of respiratory irritation,” reported Paul Cochrane, President of Cochrane and Associates, the company behind the IAQ Video Network and the new public outreach video. “The EPA estimates that between 200,000 and 1,000,000 asthmatic children have their condition made worse by exposure to secondhand smoke each year. We hope this new online video helps to educate people about secondhand smoke and ways people can protect their children’s health.”
To view this video please visit http://www.iaqtv.com/ or
Wages of sin: who are you funding?
http://www.smh.com.au/national/wages-of-sin-who-are-you-funding-20111209-1onub.html
Julia Medew
December 10, 2011 – 3:00AM
DO YOU support tobacco companies, gambling and the makers of weapons and pornography? Before you answer no, you might want to check your superannuation fund.
Ethical investment researchers say many Australians are unwittingly investing in ”sin stocks” because they have not examined their super funds or because their funds do not actively promote their investments.
Melbourne surgeon Benjamin Cook is one of those taken by surprise.
He was horrified to learn that one of his funds, Health Super, counted Imperial Tobacco Group, British American Tobacco and Philip Morris International in its top 10 international investments despite marketing itself as the ”fund for people who care”.
The discovery prompted him to dump the multibillion-dollar fund, which represents about 200,000 health and community service workers.
”I’m an ear, nose and throat surgeon who sees throat cancer every day, so to think we’re blindly supporting tobacco is bizarre,” he said.
Sarah Clawson, of the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia, said despite a shift towards more ”socially responsible” or ”sustainable” investments in the super industry over the past decade, many funds still invested in companies that some people might consider unethical.
For example, people passionate about environmental sustainability may be shocked to find their money in mining stocks or companies that log old-growth forests, she said. Companies that made gaming machines, liquor, tobacco products, armaments and pornography were also commonly found in fund portfolios.
She said that only about 35 of more than 400 super funds in Australia had signed up to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment but she hoped the number would grow as more people challenged their funds to invest more ethically.
”It usually takes a scandal for people to think ‘What is my super doing?’,” she said. ”For example, back in 2008 in the Netherlands, people found out that their fund was investing in cluster bombs … People took to the streets and it made the fund change its policy.”
Chris Clausen, former chief executive of Health Super and now deputy chief executive of First State Super, the company Health Super was in the process of merging with, said although the fund did not condone smoking or necessarily want to support tobacco companies, the reality was that ”from an investment hypothesis, tobacco companies stack up”.
He said that while Health Super had a socially responsible investment option that excluded tobacco companies among others, only about 2000 of its 200,000 members had taken it up over the past eight years.
Mr Clausen said one employer had been asking the fund to stop investing in tobacco companies, a demand that was being considered.
Nathan MacPhee, the chief executive of superannuation research company Super Ratings, said if people wanted to choose ethical investments, they should consider the relationships between companies because they might find worrying layers of investment beneath a seemingly innocuous stock.
For example, if someone wanted to avoid gambling, they may choose to eliminate Woolworths, given it was one of the largest owners of poker machines.
While this approach could take hours of research, Mr MacPhee said the effort could be worthwhile.
”You’re generally not sacrificing performance if you choose socially good investments … the evidence we have is that they perform similar to the mainstream and in some cases, they’re in front.”
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/national/wages-of-sin-who-are-you-funding-20111209-1onub.html
ECUADOR TAKES AMRO LEAD IN TOBACCO TAXES
The new tax reform which entered into force in Ecuador since November 24, leaves our country in the AMRO’s leading position in tobacco taxes, and in 19th place in the global ranking. Ecuador is strongly committed to public health and a better way of life for its population.
Raising taxes on tobacco is, by itself, the most effective measure to reduce tobacco use. Along with the other measures taken this year, which are expressed in the new National Comprehensive Law and local Smokefree Ordinances already in place in 8 cities across the country, Ecuador is a very remarkable case of advance to comply with the FCTC.
By the initiative of the President of the Republic, and with continuous support from the civil society, Ecuador just enforced a specific tax of $ 0.08 on each cigarette unit, applied to all brands and packaging; this translates in an average increase of 20% in the final price. This is a real milestone for the Region of the Americas and the world, which demonstrates the enormous importance that our Authorities give to the effective enforcement of human rights to life, health and a healthy environment.
With the collaboration of Dr. Roberto Iglesias, an international expert on tobacco taxes, we have calculated the new tax in force in relation to the most recent data available for the world and generated by the World Health Organization (2010) (http://www.who.int/tobacco/global_report/2011/appendix_vi/en/index.html).
According to that, you can find some comparison charts below.
It is remarkable that the new tax meets some of the most advanced recommendations in fiscal policy in this field: it is adjustable every six months according to the consumer price index, which maintains the value against the final price, and other prices in the economy. And it is specific, a fixed amount for all brands and packaging (8 cents per unit), which reduces the incentive for tobacco corporations to lower the prices of some brands, being effective to counteract the industry’s strategy to incorporate new young consumers to the epidemic through low prices.
Now our country has to strengthen customs and police controls, and to reinforce law to prevent illicit traffic. It has to be careful about fake tracking systems currently promoted by the tobacco industry as a whole (Codentify) and reaffirm our sovereignty to implement an adequate and independent control.
The process for the proposal and discussion of this tax has demonstrated that Ecuador has some of the best tax experts in the region, so the Tax Office could support other Latin American countries who would want to advance in this field through South-South cooperation. As civil society, we are convinced that our Authorities, also, are able to push the negotiation of a unique tobacco tax for UNASUR (The Union of South American Nations) which would strengthen the control of illicit traffic and the tobacco tax collecting in each country, thus promoting sub-regional compliance with the FCTC and comprehensive protection of the citizenship.
For more information, please contact: rociovacab@fesar.org (FESAR-Anti Tobacco Alliance)
| THE AMERICAS | % excise tax | % all other taxes | 2010 total |
| Ecuador 2011 | 66.7% | 10.71% | 77.38% |
| Chile | 60% | 16% | 76% |
| Argentina | 69% | 7% | 76% |
| Uruguay | 54% | 18% | 72% |
| Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) | 68% | 3% | 71% |
| Ecuador 2010 | 54% | 11% | 64% |
| Brazil | 26% | 34% | 60% |
| Peru | 31% | 19% | 50% |
| Colombia | 40% | 10% | 50% |
| Bolivia (Plurinational State of) | 29% | 13% | 42% |
| Canada | 58% | 9% | 67% |
| United States of America | 40% | 5% | 45% |
Source: WHO, 2010; Iglesias, R., Vaca B., R. 2011
| GLOBALLY | % excise tax | % all other taxes | 2010 total | |
| Bulgaria | 72% | 17% | 89% | 1 |
| Poland | 68% | 18% | 86% | 2 |
| Greece | 67% | 19% | 86% | 3 |
| Slovakia | 67% | 16% | 83% | 4 |
| Romania | 64% | 19% | 83% | 5 |
| Estonia | 66% | 17% | 83% | 6 |
| Israel | 68% | 14% | 82% | 7 |
| Latvia | 64% | 17% | 81% | 8 |
| France | 64% | 16% | 80% | 9 |
| Portugal | 62% | 17% | 79% | 10 |
| Hungary | 59% | 20% | 79% | 11 |
| Finland | 60% | 19% | 79% | 12 |
| Czech Republic | 62% | 17% | 79% | 13 |
| Ireland | 61% | 17% | 79% | 14 |
| Turkey | 63% | 15% | 78% | 15 |
| Spain | 63% | 15% | 78% | 16 |
| Cook Islands | 0% | 78% | 78% | 17 |
| West Bank and Gaza Strip | 65% | 13% | 78% | 18 |
| ECUADOR 2011 | 66,70% | 10,71% | 77,38% | 19 |
| Lithuania | 60% | 17% | 77% | |
| United Kingdom | 62% | 15% | 77% | |
| Chile | 60% | 16% | 76% |
Source: WHO, 2010; Iglesias, R., Vaca B., R. 2011
Rocio Vaca Bucheli
President & Executive Director FESAR
Anti Tobacco Alliance Technical Secretariat
Quito – Ecuador
Download PDF : ECUADOR TAKES AMRO LEAD IN TOBACCO TAXES-1
Weak Dutch tobacco controls will cost lives -experts
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/09/dutch-tobacco-health-idUSL5E7N84UJ
20111209
Weak Dutch tobacco controls will cost lives -experts
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Fri Dec 9, 2011 5:03am EST
* Dutch government accused of “turning its back on science”
* Weak rules may lead to 145,000 preventable deaths by 2040
By Kate Kelland
LONDON, Dec 9 (Reuters) – Leading cancer, asthma and heart health experts
accused the Dutch government on Friday of “all but closing down” its tobacco
controls and said such lax policies could lead to 145,000 preventable deaths
by 2040.
In a letter to The Lancet medical journal, specialists from Europe, the
United States and Canada said new Dutch policy moves — including weakening
smoking bans in bars and ending the reimbursement of quit-smoking aids —
would inevitably cost lives.
“Every death that ensues would not just be the responsibility of the tobacco
industry, which continues to promote its lethal product, but also a
government that looks the other way under the disingenuous banner of
‘personal choice’ and allows this to happen,” the experts wrote.
Smoking causes lung cancer, which is often fatal, and other chronic
respiratory diseases. It is also a major risk factor for cardiovascular
diseases, the world’s number one killers.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) predicts that tobacco will kill nearly 6
million people worldwide this year, including more than 600,000 non-smokers
who will die as a result of exposed to second-hand smoke. By 2030, it
predicts that tobacco could be killing 8 million people a year.
The experts writing in the Lancet said the Netherlands had fallen out of
step with the rest of Europe, and far behind countries like Australia and
Uruguay where governments have taken tough action to curb the reach of the
tobacco industry.
Authorities in the Netherlands, where the smoking rate is relatively high
compared to other Western countries, have already relaxed existing
smoke-free laws by saying they need not apply to small owner-run bars.
The Lancet letter said the government was now set to reverse a decision
giving smokers who want to quit access to treatment and help.
Florence Berteletti Kemp, director of the Brussels-based Smokefree
Partnership and a signatory to the Lancet letter, accused the Dutch
government of “turning its back on science and on proven best practice”.
“The strategies being adopted…will lead to more disease and death,” she
said in a statement as the letter was published.
A Dutch government spokesperson was not immediately available for comment.
Geoffrey Fong of the University of Waterloo in Canada, who also signed the
Lancet letter, said Dutch policies were also out of line with the WHO’s
Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, an international agreement signed
by more than 170 countries — including the Netherlands — aimed at curbing
tobacco use.
“The Dutch government is reducing the information available to consumers,
refusing to introduce graphic pack warnings, and reducing assistance for
smokers who want to quit,” Fong said, accusing policymakers of “leaving
smokers to their fate, which has been strongly determined by the highly
addictive products of the tobacco industry.”
Cigarette packs in the Netherlands carry warning signs saying Smoking Kills
but not photographs illustrating the dangers of smoking.
Earlier this year, a Dutch study called SimSmoke2 projected the effect of
tobacco policies on smoking rates and future premature deaths and found that
without effective tobacco controls, almost a million lives would be cut
short in the Netherlands due to smoke-related diseases between 2011 and
2040.
The experts said that of these, 145,000 lives could be saved over the same
period by comprehensive tobacco controls. (Additional reporting by Sara Webb
in Amsterdam; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
Lifestyle linked to nearly half of UK cancer cases
LONDON — Lifestyle choices such as smoking, alcohol or an unhealthy diet are linked to nearly half of Britain’s cancer cases, a study claimed on Wednesday.
These “preventable” cancers account for 45 percent of all cancers in men and 40 percent of cancers in women, according to Cancer Research UK — more than 100,000 cases a year.
The authors claim the study, which used a range of methods to estimate the risk of various lifestyle choices, is the most comprehensive ever written on the subject.
?Many people believe cancer is down to fate or ‘in the genes’ and that it is the luck of the draw whether they get it,” said author Max Parkin, an epidemiologist at Queen Mary, University of London.
?Looking at all the evidence, it’s clear that around 40 percent of all cancers are caused by things we mostly have the power to change.”
Smoking is by far the habit that increases cancer risk the most, causing 23 percent of all cancers in men and 15.6 percent of cases in women — 60,800 cases a year in total, according to the study.
For men, lack of fruit and vegetables — linked to 6.1 percent of cases — was the second most important factor, followed by work conditions such as whether they were exposed to asbestos (4.9 percent of cancers).
For women, the second biggest factor was obesity, linked to 6.9 percent of cases.
?We didn?t expect to find that eating fruit and vegetables would prove to be so important in protecting men against cancer,” said Parkin. “And among women we didn?t expect being overweight to have a greater effect than alcohol.”
Alcohol was blamed by the study for 3.3 percent of female cancers — fewer cases than those blamed on sunbeds (3.6 percent).
?Leading a healthy life doesn?t guarantee that a person won?t get cancer,” said Dr Harpal Kumar, Cancer Research UK’s chief executive. “But this study shows that healthy habits can significantly stack the odds in our favour.”
Imperial Tobacco becomes 2nd company to challenge packaging laws in Australia’s High Court
By Associated Press, Published: December 6, 2011
CANBERRA, Australia — A second major tobacco company went to Australia’s High Court on Tuesday to argue that new laws banning logos from cigarette packs are unconstitutional.
Imperial Tobacco Australia Ltd., the third-largest company in the Australian tobacco market, filed pleadings in the country’s highest court. British American Tobacco Australia Ltd., the Australian market leader, initiated similar action last week against laws banning distinctive colors and designs from packs and rendering them uniformly olive-brown starting in December 2012.
Imperial Tobacco says the laws breach Australia’s constitution because they acquire intellectual property on unjust terms.
Last month, Australia became the first country to pass such strict packaging laws, which are aimed at stripping away any lingering glamour associated with smoking.
Tobacco companies say the law will slash billions of dollars from the values of their brands.
The government has said it anticipates court challenges and expects them to be defeated.
While the two tobacco companies’ cases are separate, the High Court could decide to hear them together.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.