Tobacco packs with design features have started to appear in stores in Maldives. It was this year’s World No Tobacco Day that marked in Maldives the entry into force of the new regulations on packaging and labelling of all tobacco products issued on 27 February 2019. The “Regulation on Packaging and Labeling Tobacco Products” was formulated by the Tobacco Control Board pursuant to the Tobacco Control Act 15/2010.
Tobacco is the number one cause of preventable death in the world and it is no exception in Brazil. Every year 156,000 people are killed in the biggest country in South America (12.6% all national deaths), directly and indirectly costing the Brazilian healthcare system US$17 billion. However, the tobacco industry only pays a fraction of that amount, with a government revenue generated of US$ 3.5 billion in taxes.
As of 1st January 2020, Belgium will be joining the growing number of countries that have adopted plain packaging and therefore be the fifth one in Europe, after France, the UK, Norway and Ireland, to have initiated such measure. This new regulation not only apply to conventional cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco, tobacco for waterpipes, but also to related products such as rolling paper, cigarette tubes and filters.
In a referral order dated 15 May 2019, the interim relief judge of Le Mans ruled in favor of the Comité National Contre le Tabagisme (CNCT), a public organization whose mission is to ensure compliance with tobacco control legislation, to prohibit Philip Morris Product and Ducati to make or display any reference to Philip Morris’ Mission Winnow branding during the French motorcycle Grand Prix, as well as including it in any related communication related to the event.
According to the referral order, the CNCT stated in their reasoning for legal action that:
In a referral order dated 15 May 2019, the interim relief judge of Le Mans ruled in favor of the Comité National Contre le Tabagisme (CNCT), a public organization whose mission is to ensure compliance with tobacco control legislation, to prohibit Philip Morris Product and Ducati to make or display any reference to Philip Morris’ Mission Winnow branding during the French motorcycle Grand Prix, as well as including it in any related communication related to the event.
According to the referral order, the CNCT stated in their reasoning for legal action that:
On 1 May 2019, Canadian Minister of Health Ginette Petitpas Taylor announced the adoption of comprehensive plain packaging regulations for tobacco packaging and products, effective from 9 November 2019 at manufacturer level and 7 February 2020 at retail level.
The Decree 806, to give effect to Law No 19.723 dated 21 December 2018, was adopted by the Ministry of Public Health on 29 April 2019. This regulation will enter into force twelve months after the adoption of Law No 19.723.
The Ministry of Public Health identified the necessity to adopt complementary measures in relation to the health warnings and packaging of tobacco products. These new regulations take into consideration the successful examples of Australia, France, Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.