Tuesday 18 December 2012

Now about that tobacco smuggling...

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The smuggling that ASH and others say isn't happening. They need to tell their friends:

A public health report for Lancashire, produced for the first time in 2011, focuses on what the directors of public health in the county believe are the main current challenges in tackling health inequalities between richer and poorer communities.

The report said not only does the sale of illicit tobacco locally undermine all other efforts to reduce smoking rates, it also discourages people who smoke to quit, encourages those who smoke to smoke more and is linked to local and large scale organised crime. 

A little off message there! Isn't smuggling supposed to be declining not rising, less of a problem not more of a problem? Not in the Red Rose county it seems:

They are hoping readers will make more calls about illegal traders to police and Trading Standards so that the unscrupulous counterfeit and illicit tobacco sellers - often linked to the criminal underworld - can be brought to justice.

Illicit tobacco is more likely to be sold in poor and disadvantaged communities, often to children.

See what you've done, you nannying fussbuckets? You've made it more worthwhile for the smugglers to take the risk. And those smugglers don't care who they sell to do they!  And those standardised packs you want won't help either will they.

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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

FUMAR MATAR.
Don't know what it means but definitely cheaper.
I suppose it means, cheaper!
he he .

Leg-iron said...

The standardised packs will help the smugglers enormously. Much easier to produce than all those different logos.

Perhaps ASH are earning a bit from smugglers on the side?

Lou said...

There is virtually no risk. Once a smoker has a reliable source of tobacco that's half the price (or less) than retail, the last thing they'll do is clype on their supplier.

Several things happen then, but the most pertinent are:

1) Official sales of tobacco are reduced (meaning the fussbuckets can claim success)
2) The exchequer gets naff all in VAT or duty (and that's perfect for all concerned).

Things like retailers, business rates, tax from tobacco companies and so on factor into this, but one needs to have a grasp of the basics of an economy and that's not in the remit of TCI.