Thursday, November 10, 2011

Australia To become First Country To Enforce Plain Packaging For Cigarettes.

Australia is to become the first country to enforce the plain packaging of cigarettes and the tobacco companies have vowed to fight the new legislation in court from December next year, all cigarettes will be sold in olive green packs, which research has shown is least appealing to smokers.

A under the new laws, approved by the upper house of parliament, no trademark brand logos will be permitted on any packaging of tobacco products, although companies will be able to print in the name and the cigarette brand in small, prescribed font on the packets and the boxes will continue to carry stark health warning messages and pictures to will cover 75% of the front of the pack and 90% of the back.

The legislation stops one young Australian from picking up a shiny, coloured packet and prevents them becoming addicted to cigarettes then in my view it will have been worthwhile, said John Faulkner to a Labor senator in the parliamentary debate and the debate in Australia has been keenly watched around the world, including in Britain, Canada and New Zealand where similar plans to curtail branding are being considered.

The government can't take away valuable property from a legal company without compensation, said Scott McIntyre, spokesman for British American Tobacco Australia to a mcIntyre said the company's brands, including Winfield and Benson & Hedges, were worth billions of dollars we're a legal company with legal products selling to adults who know the risks of smoking. We're taking this to the high court because we believe the removal of our valuable intellectual property is unconstitutional, he said.

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