Reynolds wants changes to warning label on smokeless tobacco products

Winston-Salem-based R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. wants the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to make changes to one of the warning labels on smokeless products, the Winston-Salem Journal reports.

The change would say that while smokeless tobacco is not safe, it "presents substantially lower risks to health than cigarettes.” The warnings currently say smokeless tobacco "is not a safe alternative to cigarettes.”

Smokeless tobacco products include moist snuff, snus, dissolvable products and e-cigarettes.

The FDA will hold a hearing Monday on how the agency should monitor and regulate smoking cessation and nicotine-replacement therapy products, according to The Business Journals.

Less Harmful Constituents When Heating Tobacco at Lower Temperatures?

Many of the harmful constituents found in the smoke from a conventional cigarette result from the burning of tobacco. Lowering the temperature at which the "smoke" is generated means that nicotine and some aroma compounds are still released, but the user may no longer be exposed to some of the combustion products that are generated by the burning of tobacco and which may contribute to the risk of smoking-related diseases. By measuring the air flow through a tobacco matrix that is heated in a new type of smoking product it may be possible to determine which constituents are released, at which time and at which location.

The research of David Lopez Penha of the University of Twente is an important first step in understanding the physics of smoking.

Lopez Penha has investigated flows in porous media, derived from cast leaf tobacco biomass. He has developed a model that predicts the flow of hot air through this highly complex porous medium. For this purpose the 3-D pore geometry was reconstructed using microCT-scans (micro-Computed Tomography). For the first time, his work provides some insight into the way that air flows through the small pores inside the tobacco plugs: this could open up a new way of determining which substances may be released and at what concentrations, during the flow of air through heated tobacco matrices, according to Science Daily.

Bar owners protest state smoking ban

State bar owners have been raising opposition to the statewide smoking ban in bars and restaurants, claiming to legislators and courts that the ban is ruining their business.

While restaurants have come to appreciate the ban’s unforeseen effect of increasing sales, the president of the N.C. Bar, Pub & Tavern Association recently wrote a letter to the N.C. General Assembly urging legislators to exclude profit-making bars from the ban.

Sales at Gate City Billiards Club, a private club in Greensboro, have decreased 25 percent since the 2010 ban , said Don Liebes, the club’s owner and president of the association.

“We’re different from restaurants,” he said, adding that 75 percent of his customers smoke. “The ban put us at a competitive disadvantage.”

Because of the ban, the club has lost $30,000 since January, Liebes said. On an average Friday night, the club now serves 30 fewer customers — about a 15 percent decrease.

“We’re not making any money,” he said. “It’s only a matter of time before we go under.”

Bar and restaurant owners in the state were initially concerned that the ban would be an excessive regulation, said Brad Hurley, co-owner of the 42nd Street Oyster Bar & Seafood Grill in Raleigh and chairman-elect of the N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association.

But some restaurant owners now say the ban has boosted sales. In a letter sent Oct. 5 by the restaurant association to the legislature, one restaurant owner reportedly observed a 25 to 30 percent growth in sales since 2009, reports The Daily Tar Heel.

Advocates to push for local tobacco control again

Tobacco users, how about giving up tobacco? And lawmakers, how about giving up tobacco money? And giving cities in Oklahoma the option of crafting their own tobacco-control measures?

Tobacco use is arguably Oklahoma's biggest health problem, and a main reason the state regularly ranks poorly on measures of health and well-being.

It's the state's No. 1 cause of preventable death, responsible for the deaths of about 6,000 Oklahomans a year. At current usage rates, an estimated 87,000 Oklahoma young people will ultimately die premature deaths as a result of tobacco use.

The state has made strides in recent years in protecting non-users from the proven hazards of secondhand smoke. That's to our credit. But until the stranglehold that the tobacco industry has over our Legislature is broken, don't look for much more progress. 

 According to the website, 84 of the 97 representatives in office as of Oct. 1 have accepted a total of $80,550 in campaign contributions from tobacco lobbyists since 2006. Also since 2006, 45 of them have accepted a total of $29,750 from tobacco PACs. And 86 have accepted a total of $25,304 in meals and other gifts from tobacco lobbyists.

Nine representatives have accepted more than $3,000, and only one of them voted for tobacco-control legislation last year.

Over in the Senate, 41 of 48 senators have accepted a total of $74,750 in campaign funds from tobacco lobbyists since 2006. Twenty-two have accepted a total of $19,750 from PACs, and 42 have accepted a total of $12,615 in meals and other gifts.

Eleven senators have accepted a total of $3,000 or more.

Canada's tobacco warnings

Canada's world ranking for cigarette package warnings rose to fourth in 2012 from 15th in 2010 after new Canadian warnings covering 75 per cent of cigarette packages were implemented, an international report finds.

Australia, which received the top ranking, has the largest warnings, covering 82.5 per cent of the package front and back of packages (75 per cent front, 90 per cent back), the group said. Australia also prohibits tobacco company colours, logo and design elements on the branded part of the package.

The other top-ranked countries for warning sizes in the report were:

- Uruguay tied for second with Sri Lanka at 80 per cent (80 per cent of front, 80 per cent of back),

- Brunei tied with Canada for fourth at 75 per cent (75 per cent of front, 75 per cent back).

Heavy Smoking on the Rise Among Teens

The smoking rate among men dropped from 51.6 percent in 2005 to 48.3 percent in 2010, but more than one in every 10 teenagers still smokes, according to the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The rate among middle and high school students who smoked more than once over the 30 days prior to the annual KCDC survey has remained steady at around 12 percent since 2007. The figure was even higher among boys at 17 percent last year.

What is more worrisome is increasing number of smoking teenagers. The rate of those who smoked every day for 30 days prior to the survey rose more than 1.5 times from 3.9 percent in 2005 to 6.1 percent last year. Last year some 2.8 percent said they smoke more than 10 cigarettes a day.

Some experts blame the social environment where many adults can be seen smoking in the street and cigarettes come in garish packets.

According to last year's survey, 39.6 percent of teenagers said they saw family members or guests in their home smoke over the last week, informs The Chosunilbo.

"Adolescents tend to imitate adults or celebrities," claimed Lee Hae-kook of Catholic University College of Medicine. "If they smoke in adolescence, when the brain develops, teenagers can get seriously addicted to nicotine and also easily fall victim to other addictions like alcohol or gambling."

There’s an app for cigarette advertising

Every since tobacco advertising was first forced off our television screens in the 1970s, the tobacco industry has been at pains to splash its logos and brands just about anywhere it can.

Public health officials and governments have never been able to keep up with determined and inspired cigarette advertising executives.

It’s not surprising then that tobacco product promotions have wormed their way on to our mobile phones through app stores. With Smartphone sales and mobile Internet use skyrocketing globally, it just makes good business sense to take advantage of this highly unregulated medium.

Devotees of the most popular cigarette brand in the world, Marlboro, for example, can pay just 99 cents to decorate their phones with the infamous red chevron, reports The Conversation.

While it could be completely feasible that the Marlboro global brand owner, Philip Morris International, is not at all connected with this app, they do not appear to have taken any steps to prevent app developers from abusing their trademark. Given how forcibly Philip Morris defended its trademark rights in the Australian High court over plain packaging this seems strangely inconsistent.

Tobacco industry defenders will undoubtedly contest that any move to regulate content on app stores is tantamount to gagging the most vulnerable citizens who dare to defy the powerful nanny state. When the simple truth is, tobacco advertising laws must be adapted to keep up with new media.

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Tobacco Legislation Overreaches

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Legislation proposed by the Downtown Ithaca Alliance would regulate and limit the number of stores that can sell tobacco products and paraphernalia in Ithaca. Its intent is to reduce tobacco use, specifically by youth. A guest commentary in the Ithaca Times by Tobacco Free Tompkins speaks to many of the important reasons to work towards this goal.

Tobacco is a serious public health problem that needs to be more aggressively addressed, and as a progressive city we should be leading the way on innovative health-based approaches. However, the DIA’s proposal is overreaching in scope, and, as the young people who this legislation is meant to protect, we are seriously concerned about the effects it could have on public health.

Tobacco industry can afford sin-tax: officials

Senior government officials said today that the tobacco industry can afford the government's preferred version of the sin-tax reform bill. Secretary Ramon Carandang of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) sent the message when he was responding to the concerns raised by Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp. (PMFTC) on the sin-tax measure.

"That's a common argument brought up in almost every country where sin taxes are about to be increased. But the evidence will show that after a period of adjustment tobacco company incomes recover," Carandang said, trying to downplay the concerns that the measure would lead to massive unemployment in the tobacco industry and encourage smuggling.

"The industry can afford it. Plus the greater good that the revenues can do for public health make it hard to argue against it, " Carandang added. In an interview with state-run Radyo ng Bayan today, Deputy Palace Spokesperson Abigail Valte reiterated the government 's assurance that the sin-tax measure would not lead to massive unemployment in the tobacco industry, since part of its revenues would be used to fund safety nets for affected farmers.

"On the job losses, we have a safety net. Part of the revenue that will be collected will go into a safety net for tobacco farmers precisely because there are concerns that some of them might be displaced," Valte added.

UCLA Will Go Tobacco-Free on Earth Day 2013

UCLA Chancellor Gene Block announced today that the campus will go tobacco-free on Earth Day (April 22) 2013. Shepherded by UCLA's Tobacco-Free Steering Committee, the breath of fresh air will ban the use of any and all tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes and oral tobacco, on the Westwood campus as well as other sites owned or leased by the university.

UCLA Health Sciences has been a step ahead of the rest of the (cigarette) buttheads, having implemented a smoke-free policy last November. University of California President Mark Yudof has asked all UC campuses to follow suit by January 2014.

Minnesota candidate guilty of marijuana sales still in race

A mayoral candidate in Winona County admits his conviction for selling marijuana could "throw a few complications" into his campaign. Stephen Conlin says he's committed to his campaign for mayor of St. Charles.

Conlin will be eligible to vote for himself on Tuesday because he hasn't been sentenced. But, should he defeat incumbent Bill Spitzer, he would not be able to hold office because of his felony conviction. He's scheduled for sentencing in December.

Minnesota Secretary of State spokesman Pat Turgeon tells the Winona Daily News that if Conlin is elected, it would be up to the city to decide how to fill the vacancy. Conlin was convicted last week of selling and possessing marijuana. The charges are the result of a 2010 raid on his home and downtown barbershop.

Four smoking marijuana when officers arrived with warrant

An Evansville man, a woman he was living with and her two daughters were arrested Tuesday on various drug charges. Jamie Bullington, 46, Tracy Crow, 25, Brittany Steele, 23, and Lawrence McDonald, 43 were arrested after police reported finding marijuana and prescription pills in their home in the 2600 block of Culverson Avenue. At 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday, investigators with the Evansville Police Department Narcotics Joint Task Force unit searched the residence at 2601 Culverson Ave.

The pills investigators reported finding included Valium and Xanax that none of the four people had a prescription for, officials said. All of the suspects were reported to have been smoking marijuana when detectives arrived. Officials said that Bullington is the mother of Steele and Crow. McDonald is charged with one count of maintaining a common nuisance, a class D felony, and possession of marijuana with a prior conviction.

Bullington is charged with two counts of possession schedule IV, a class D felony, one count of maintaining a common nuisance, a class D felony, and possession of marijuana, a class A misdemeanor. Crow and Steele are both charged with one count of maintaining a common nuisance, a class D felony, and possession of marijuana, a class A misdemeanor.

Clemson’s tobacco ban

The world would be a better place if no one smoked or chewed tobacco. And Clemson University officials are acting sensibly, we think, in trying to discourage tobacco use on campus. Nonetheless, smoking remains a legal indulgence, and students over 18 who choose to smoke should have a place where they legally can do so. Clemson announced this month that it plans to ban all tobacco products both indoors and outdoors on campus within two years. Clemson officials said they are bringing together students, professors and administrators to write a tobacco-free policy and put the plans in place by 2014.

Clemson wouldn’t be the only tobacco-free campus in the state but it would be by far the largest. Charleston Southern University, Lander University and the University of South Carolina Upstate have campus-wide smoking tobacco bans, as do an estimated 600 colleges and universities across the nation. Surveys indicate that about 12 percent of Clemson students smoke on campus. About the same number of employees are likely smokers, too. Smoking already is banned in all Clemson buildings.

The tobacco ban, however, would extend to all areas of the campus, including sports facilities and areas where students and alumni gather to tailgate before games. Alumni and visitors would be subject to the ban as well. Again, we understand that preventing young people from taking up the tobacco habit or convincing them to quit is a worthy goal. And Clemson officials said programs would be instituted to aid students in quitting, which is a good idea. We have enthusiastically supported efforts to make public buildings in Rock Hill and other areas of York County smoke-free, including outdoor sports venues.

But we also have recognized an individual’s right to light up in his or her car, home, other personal property and, essentially, areas in which other people are not affected by the second-hand smoke. Hundreds of colleges and universities apparently have successfully banned tobacco use. Perhaps students at Clemson could find places to smoke off campus easily enough if tobacco is banned on campus. But we wouldn’t find it unreasonable to establish at least one designated smoking area on campus to allow students to smoke or chew tobacco if they choose. An absolute prohibition looks like an invitation to find ways to break the rules.

A spokesman at the University of Arkansas, which has a tobacco ban, said the rule “probably is abided by about as much as the no-drinking policy is abided by.” Which probably means not always. Clemson needs to institute rules with which students and employees will voluntarily comply. And university officials need to take into account the probability that some will smoke or chew tobacco despite the ban. Until the U.S. decides to make tobacco a controlled substance whose use is entirely regulated by the government, allowing its use while also working to protect people from being unwillingly subjected to second-hand smoke will be a balancing act. We need to find ways to prevent young people from becoming addicted to tobacco but outright prohibition rarely works 100 percent of the time.

Cost of tobacco could be set to rise

A study presented by the Health Ministry on Wednesday suggested that a rise in tobacco prices could contribute toward reducing the number of smokers in Greece –- where a lackluster anti-smoking campaign has failed to yield the expected results –- while sources suggest that the ministry is also exploring the idea of levying a special tobacco tax to benefit the country’s biggest healthcare provider.

The ministry’s general secretary for public health, Christina Papanikolaou, also announced the re-establishment of a national anti-smoking committee to be headed by Panagiotis Behrakis, a Harvard University professor and lung specialist. Behrakis presented the study, which was compiled by a group of economists specializing in the health sector. It suggests that a price hike in tobacco products by 2 euros would increase the state’s revenues from tobacco taxes by 1.2 billion euros and would also lead to a reduction in Greece’s adult smokers by some 380,000 people.

Papanikolaou meanwhile cited a recent study which found that 71 percent of Greeks would agree to a rise in tobacco prices if this were to benefit the public healthcare system. The official went on to propose that a special tax could also be introduced on tobacco products which would go toward the National Organization for Healthcare Provision (EOPYY) and other social security funds.

Kathimerini understands that the Health Ministry is also pondering measures to restrict the numbers of outlets where tobacco products are sold as well as to increase inspections at outlets to ensure that cigarettes and other tobacco products are not sold to minors.

Sweet deception? Fruit flavored tobacco

There is a growing campaign called Sweet Deception by anti-tobacco critics. "The tobacco industry has billions of dollars to spend on advertising and, so what they are doing is taking pretty colors and making it look like it's not dangerous," says Jennifer Emmons of the Florida Department of Health. Emmons is referring to grape, cherry and strawberry flavored smokeless tobacco and cigarillos. She says a major part of her job right now is educating parents about these products she says will confuse and attract children.

"Bottom line is that the tobacco companies think it will make kids think that it is safe because it is purple, because it is grape. They are trying to say that it won't hurt you," says Emmons. Justin Gilyard, an 11th grader at Fernandina Beach High school says even though these products are not supposed to be sold to those under 18 his peers can still get them. "You know you have a younger brother or older friend go into the store and you give them the money and they'll bring it out to you," he says.

Justin goes on to say that it's pretty common for kids his age to use these products; that's why he joined a group called SWAT (students working against tobacco.) One of the largest makers of these flavored tobacco products is right here in Jacksonville, Swisher International. We talked to Joe Augustus, Senior VP of External Affairs for Swisher. He says they are adamantly opposed to youth using these products.

He says they even have a program called "We Card" which educates convenience store owners about how to keep these products out of the hands of those under the age of 18. In 2009, the federal government banned the fruit flavoring of cigarettes. But, the FDA now allows these flavors in smokeless tobacco.

Market loses profit from tobacco ban

Since the University of Montana introduced its campus tobacco ban last year, the University Center Market has lost $27,000 in profit. The store faces a tighter budget, a reduced number of employees and raised prices, said Bryan Thornton, the UC Market and Bookstore general manager. Jon Aliri, acting general manager of the University Bookstore, said the ban is not entirely responsible for price increases, which have been caused by a number of different factors, including the recent economic downturn. “People are making their own lunches now, faculty and students,” Aliri said. “There is more of an incentive to save.”

On top of raising prices, the store is in conversation with the UC on lowering its rent, Thornton said. “Everybody on campus depends on money,” Thornton said. “One entity adjusts, and adjustments are then made somewhere else. So if the UC reduces the rent, that has to be passed on somewhere.” Aliri said the Bookstore and the Market pay a joint lease of $381,000, of which the Market pays $40,000 a year. The profit from tobacco once paid a majority of the Market’s share of the lease. As long as the smoking ban benefits the students, Aliri said he doesn’t mind the loss. “Our mission statement is to enhance the life of the students,” Aliri said.

“To us, it’s a little bit easier to cope when we know it’s for students. We are an intricate part of the campus community, and we will support and continue to support any policy of the University’s.” The Market is a nonprofit organization and sells most things at a lower price than conventional stores. Cigarettes were never sold at a lower cost. Curry Health Services Health Promotions Specialist Brent Hildebrand said he’s seen a drop in smoking around campus since the ban. “I mean, you are less likely to be walking behind a smoker walking to class,” Hildebrand said.

 “We still need to discuss more in the future about actual enforcement of the policy. It’s difficult because we don’t want to single people out.” Since the ban, there has been a drop in the number of people who visit Curry Health Center to seek help quitting smoking, Hildebrand said. Hildebrand attributes the drop to the removal of smoking signs where Curry put up information about Quit Kits, a program to help students quit smoking or chewing tobacco.

 To give people more information about Quit Kits, Curry Health Center is passing out flyers about where to find the kits. Free drink coupons to the Market are included with the flyers. Assistant manager Tyler Swank said he was more then happy to help when Hildebrand approached him. “When they contacted me, I was willing,” Swank said. “It’s an incentive to stop smoking on campus, a positive approach.” Swank provided the coupons free of charge.

Tobacco-Control Legislation Helps Control Smoking in Ukraine

Harsh steps taken by legislation against smoking have played a significant role in controlling smoking, with more number of Ukrainians starting to stop smoking. Government has banned the advertisement for marketing purposes; people are not allowed to smoke in public areas. Nevertheless, the government has introduced warning notes on cigarette packages, which is a major step forward to help control the smoking habit.

Further, previously in the month of June, President Viktor Yanukovych passed a new law, which will prohibit smoking indoors. This law will be implemented on Dec. 16. The law will see that people don't smoke in restaurants, bars, cafes, hotels. Further, even hookah and electronic cigarettes have been banned under this new law.

 Although, the mentioned areas will be considered as No Smoking Zones, people have been allowed to smoke in their office premises. However, those not following the rules will have to pay a fine ranging from Hr 1,000 ($125) to Hr 10,000. Tobacco-control legislation has been a major success and with the implementation of the new bill, it will achieve more. Andriy Skipalskyi from Ukraine Smoke Free said, "Lobbying for this legislation has been going on for the last three years and will go down in history as one of the most difficult campaigns in Ukraine".

MWSU Approves Tobacco Ban on Campus

A push to make Missouri Western State University a tobacco-free campus moves forward. Approval came today for a policy that bans smoking and other tobacco products on campus. A student-led group and some faculty members took the initiative to Missouri Western's Board of Governors in April. At that time, the board approved the resolution and passed it on to administrators. 

Missouri Western President Dr. Robert Vartabedian approved the measure today. Kent Heier, the university's assistant director of public relations, said students and faculty were informed of the decision today. A date for the policy to go into effect has not been announced. The university plans to make a formal announcement Friday, Oct. 26 during the Create a Healthy Workforce summit on campus.

TCC says buyers demand for tobacco still intact

The Tobacco Control Commission (TCC) has said demand for tobacco from buyers is currently intact, an indication that there is still a future for the country's green gold. Touring some tobacco nurseries in Kukanga Village, Zomba, TCC Technical and Operations Manager Fredrick Kamvazina said the future of tobacco in the country remains bright though there are global campaigns on anti smoking.

"We are still getting orders from the buyers, which is an indication that the demand for the crop is still there," said Kamvazina. TCC Acting Regional Manager for South Willard Singo assured the farmers that their crop will go through the market this year. "Last year, our production was 160 million kilogrammes but this year we are expecting production to go up by about 22 million kilogrammes, which is a positive development," said Singo.

He, however, said the growers are being encouraged to go into Integrated Production Systems through contract farming with buying companies as a precautionary measure to ensure market availability for their leaf. TCC board Chairman Gamaliel Bandawe said an assessment carried out across the country indicates that there will be a high quality leaf on the market next year.

"What I have seen so far in the nurseries is very impressive. I believe with good weather conditions and technical skills, we will have a good crop next year," said Bandawe. He urged the farmers to follow good agriculture practices so that they are able to benefit from their work.

Study Released On Tobacco Tax

A Maryland health advocacy group has released a study on the effects of tax increases on small cigars and smokeless tobacco products. The Maryland Health Care For All Coalition says the tax increase on "little cigars" is expected to cut the use of these products by those under 18 by 30-percent in the first year.

The tax increases were approved this year. They went into effect in July. The coalition pushed for the tax increases in order to make the products expensive for children. Taxes went from 15 percent of wholesale to 70 percent on "little cigars." Taxes on smokeless tobacco such as snuff went from 15 percent to 30 percent.

Students at Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School (MERVO) in Baltimore have worked with the coalition to discourage young people from using these products. The coalition found that the products that cost anywhere from $1-$5 before the tax hike, now cost up to $8.

Marijuana, tobacco found in inmate's jail cell

A small package of marijuana and tobacco left on a desk in a large, general-population inmate cell at the Mendocino County Jail led authorities bring in police dog "Britt," who found more contraband in a Monday morning search, according to the Mendocino County Sheriff's Department. "We believe it was smuggled in," said Capt. Tim Pearce of the MCSO, who serves as jail commander. Inmate Jesse Bacon, 51, had been awaiting sentencing at the jail and had left on a court-ordered pass, Pearce said, and authorities believe he smuggled the contraband into the jail in his rectum when he returned.

It was found the next day, when corrections deputy William Hardman was doing hourly safety checks and spotted a suspicious bundle sitting on a desk, according to the MCSO. He opened the package and found what appeared to be pot and tobacco. About 40 inmates were taken out of the housing unit and searched, according to the MCSO, and Hardman led his K-9 partner, Britt, through the entire unit. Britt alerted to a toilet paper roll and a sock in a bunk in one of the cells. Authorities found a tobacco package containing tobacco and marijuana inside the toilet paper roll, according to the MCSO, and a lighter, cigarette-rolling paper and six small bundles containing tobacco, chewing tobacco and marijuana inside the sock.

Bacon was charged with possessing controlled substances in a place where prisoners are held, possessing drugs or alcohol, possessing a wireless communication device or tobacco products in a local correctional facility and violating his probation. Bacon had been awaiting sentencing he was arrested in August on suspicion of vehicle theft, kidnapping, possessing methamphetamine and violating his probation. He was arraigned in court on the new charges Wednesday morning. As with all inmates booked at the jail, Bacon was strip-searched, and his clothing was searched, according to Pearce.

Authorities found no probable cause for a cavity search, which requires a warrant, he said. Inmates are found hiding tobacco about every two or three weeks on average, according to jail spokesman John Bednar, but marijuana is much less commonly found smuggled into the jail. "What typically happens is (an arrested person) secrets it in a body orifice, and when they sleep they take it out and hide it somewhere," said jail spokesman John Bednar. Mendocino County Sheriff Tom Allman applauded Hardman and Britt, who he said had just completed training together about two weeks prior to the find. "We're extremely proud of Britt," he said.

Dalli had two meetings with tobacco lobbyists

John Dalli held two meetings with tobacco lobbyists that were organised by a Sliema businessman, according to the head of the EU’s anti-fraud arm OLAF. The information released yesterday by Giovanni Kessler, director general of OLAF, during a press conference in Brussels directly contradicted earlier statements made by the former EU Commissioner. Basing its conclusions on “unambiguous circumstantial evidence”, Dr Kessler said that Mr Dalli was aware that someone close to him had been repeatedly trading in influence in dealings with Swedish snus tobacco lobbyists. “He (Dalli) was aware of this and did nothing to block, stop or report these events,” Dr Kessler said.

Earlier in the day, Mr Dalli had said in an interview with New Europe magazine, which was broadcast on You Tube: “I can vouch (Silvio Zammit, the Sliema businessman) never communicated to me... never asked me for any meeting with these people.” He was referring specifically to lobbyists from the tobacco industry. However, after Mr Kessler’s interview, Mr Dalli was quoted by Malta Today saying that he had attended two meetings organised by Mr Zammit, one held in 2010 and the other, involving a Maltese lawyer, in January 2012.

Questions sent by The Times to Mr Dalli about Mr Kessler’s statement remained unanswered by the time the newspaper went to print, though for some time yesterday there had been a technical problem with reaching Mr Dalli. On Tuesday Mr Dalli resigned as Commissioner after OLAF concluded its investigation into allegations made by tobacco company Swedish Match that wants the EU sales ban on snus – a dry tobacco that is not smoked but placed under the upper lip – to be lifted. Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi yesterday said he would be “acting fast” to nominate a new European Commissioner from Malta.

In May, Swedish Match reported it was approached by a Maltese businessman acting on Mr Dalli’s behalf who asked for money to influence the forthcoming revision of EU tobacco rules. The businessman was not named but sources have confirmed he was restaurateur and circus promoter Silvio Zammit, who until Tuesday was the Nationalist Party’s deputy mayor in Sliema. Mr Zammit resigned on the same day as Mr Dalli, citing “personal reasons”. Mr Dalli confirmed Mr Zammit was his political canvasser in the last election but denied any knowledge of the alleged dealings. He reiterated this stand in a video interview with New Europe magazine posted online yesterday, just hours before the OLAF press conference.

Mr Dalli also refuted the anti-fraud office’s conclusions and blamed the tobacco industry for getting back at him. But in a lively exchange with journalists, Dr Kessler insisted that at no stage did Mr Dalli take any action to prevent or dissociate himself from the events. “It is obvious that in cases like these we asked whether the allegations were true, or whether somebody was making them for self-interest or simply as a trap,” Dr Kessler said. OLAF answered its own questions at the end of the investigation, he added, when it was certain that illicit requests for money were made by the businessman using the Commissioner’s name.

Dr Kessler said what started as a normal lobbying relationship ended up being “vitiated” when instead of a normal fee, the businessman asked for an enormous amount of money. He added that despite the “attempted criminal means” to influence the Commission’s decision-making process, OLAF found no evidence of this actually happening. Dr Kessler refused to reveal the Maltese businessman’s name but said the sum he had asked for was “rather conspicuous, big and substantive”. The businessman had no connection with any EU institutions but was “well known to the Commissioner”. OLAF carried out “a comprehensive, thorough and swift investigation,” Dr Kessler added. “We made full use of our investigative capacity and on the basis of evidence collected we connected the pieces and this helped us arrive at our conclusions.”

He confirmed Mr Dalli had two meetings with lobbyists of snus companies that were organised by Mr Zammit. Asked about an e-mail from one of the snus lobbyists to Mr Zammit, published by Malta Today yesterday, Dr Kessler said he was not aware of it. The informal e-mail from Inge Delfosse of the European Smokeless Tobacco Council was sent in March, asking for a meeting to be arranged with Mr Dalli. Ms Delfosse also asked Mr Zammit to quote his fee. Mr Zammit’s Facebook wall shows that he was in Sweden in October 2011 and a particular wall post was ‘liked’ by Ms Delfosse. Dr Kessler said the final report had not yet been passed to Malta’s Attorney General for further action. It will be the AG who decides whether to take any criminal action against the people mentioned in OLAF’s report.

Speaking just before the OLAF chief, Commission spokeswoman Pia Ahrenkilde Hansen fended off questions on whether Mr Dalli had been asked to resign. She ostensibly stuck to the press statement issued on Tuesday that said Mr Dalli resigned after Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso informed him of the investigation’s conclusions, in order to defend his reputation and that of the Commission. She insisted he had resigned but admitted it was delivered verbally, not in writing. Mr Dalli said he was told by Mr Barroso that if he did not resign within 45 minutes he would be sacked. Ms Hansen said Malta now had to appoint a new commissioner.

She said it will be up to the new commissioner to submit his proposals for changes in the tobacco regulations. When it was pointed out that lobbying was a common practice, she said the EU had a public stakeholders’ consultation process and very clear rules on contact with lobbyists. Dr Kessler later said that when OLAF submitted its conclusions to the Commission President it asked for them to be evaluated in light of the code of conduct for commissioners.

AP tobacco growers face ammonium sulphate shortage

Tobacco farmers in Andhra Pradesh, especially in Prakasam and Nellore districts, are facing shortage of ammomium sulphate which is necessary for the standing crop. The Virginia Tobacco Growers’ Welfare Association has appealed to the Union Commerce Ministry to take necessary steps for making available the fertiliser through the Tobacco Board. Association honorary president Ch. Ranga Rao said Gujarat State Fertiliser Company (GSFC) was willing to market the fertiliser through the Tobacco Board, but the Union Fertilisers and Chemicals Ministry would have to give permission.

He said ammonium sulphate was being used in raising tobacco, chilli, paddy and vegetables in Prakasam district. The delay in giving the permission was hurting farmers badly, he added. He urged the Andhra Pradesh Government to intervene in the matter and exert pressure on the Union Fertilisers Ministry. He said ammonium sulphate should be applied along with super phosphate to tobacco crop for good yield and flavour.

If the crop suffered due to the delay in supply of fertiliser, he said, the Union Government and the State Government should bear responsibility and compensate the farmers, he added. Ranga Rao, a former member of the Tobacco Board, said the GSFC had agreed to supply the fertiliser at Rs 445/bag of 50 kg to the Tobacco Board. Another company had quoted Rs 578/bag. He wanted the authorities to act fast and save tobacco and other crops.

Tobacco companies say corrective statements go too far

Tobacco companies are urging a federal judge to reject the government’s proposed industry-financed corrective statements, calling them “forced public confessions.” The Justice Department countered that the statements need to be strong enough to protect people from future false statements made by cigarette makers. The statements include admissions that the companies lied about the dangers of smoking. U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler, who is hearing the case, has already said she wants the industry to pay for corrective statements in various types of ads.

Although she has not made a decision on what the statements will say, she said at Monday’s hearing that she doesn’t have to take the government’s proposed statements word-for-word, and will come up with “modifications.” In 2006, in a case the government brought in 1999 under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, Kessler ruled that America’s largest cigarette makers concealed the dangers of smoking for decades. The proposed statements by the cigarette-makers would become the remedy to ensure the companies don’t repeat the violation.

In the 2006 ruling, which totaled more than 1,600 pages, Kessler wrote that the tobacco industry “survives, and profits, from selling a highly addictive product which causes diseases that lead to a staggering number of deaths per year, an immeasurable amount of human suffering and economic loss, and a profound burden on our national health care system.” The Justice Department’s proposed statements would cover areas such as the addictiveness of nicotine, the lack of health benefit from “low tar,” ‘’ultra-light” and “mild” cigarettes, and the negative health effects of second-hand smoke.

One example: “For decades, we denied that we controlled the level of nicotine delivered in cigarettes. Here’s the truth: Cigarettes are a finely-tuned nicotine delivery device designed to addict people.” Noel Francisco, an attorney representing R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., one of the companies challenging the statements, said that they violate an appeals court decision which held that any corrective statements must be purely factual and uncontroversial. Francisco, who was speaking on behalf of several tobacco companies, including Philip Morris USA, the nation’s largest tobacco maker, took issue with the “finely-tuned” statement.

“That’s not an objective description of what a cigarette is,” he said. In July, a federal appeals court rejected efforts by the tobacco companies to overrule Kessler’s ruling requiring corrective statements. The companies had argued that a 2009 law that gave the Food and Drug Administration authority over the industry eliminated “any reasonable likelihood” that they would commit future RICO violations. So now the companies are trying to limit the scope of the statements, which they have said are designed to “shame and humiliate” them. They are arguing for factual statements that include the health effects and addictive qualities of smoking.

Francisco argued that would be sufficient to prevent any fraud by the industry. “It undermines our ability to do a flip-flop in the future,” he said, adding that “confessional pejorative language is unnecessary.” But Justice Department lawyer Daniel K. Crane-Hirsch said that tobacco companies would “love” generic factual statements because it would not include the industry’s record of deception. “These companies don’t want people to know what they have done ... They would like to erase history,” he said. “The purpose here is not to humiliate,” he added, but to “inoculate” people against future false statements by the industry.

Jersey budget proposes tobacco and alcohol duty hikes

Duties on cigarettes and spirits will rise by 10% from 1 January, if proposals by Jersey's Treasury and Resources are approved by the States. In its draft budget, to be debated on 4 December, the department said the tobacco increase would raise £1.2m. The rise would put 38p on a packet of 20 cigarettes and £1.05 on a litre of spirits, while strong beer (more than 4.9% ABV) would be 4p more per pint. 

The department will also ask the States to approve £56.1m for capital projects. Treasury and Resources Minister Philip Ozouf described it as "one of the biggest capital spending programmes ever undertaken in Jersey". The investment forms part of the Medium Term Financial Plan due to be debated by the States. Senator Ozouf said a recommendation, by the independent Fiscal Policy Panel, to accelerate capital investment in the short term, had been considered but was rejected.

He said: "Based on current forecasts there is insufficient funding in 2013 to achieve that." The biggest capital outlay proposed for 2013 is £18.8m for an ongoing social housing programme. The replacement of St Martin's School contributes to a proposed £8.7m allocation for Education, Sport and Culture capital projects.

Appeals court dismisses restaurant smoking ban lawsuit

A Warren bar owner’s lawsuit challenging the state’s restaurant smoking ban was dismissed by the state Court of Appeals on Thursday. In a three-paragraph memorandum, Justices Kathleen Jansen, Stephen Borrello and Jane Beckering said the lawsuit was moot because the bar, Sporty O’Toole’s, had gone out of business since the lawsuit was filed and owner Boyd Cottrell told the court he doesn’t plan to open another.

Since the bar is closed, it’s no longer affected by the ban, therefore there’s no reason to continue the lawsuit, the court said. Cottrell challenged the constitutionality of the smoking ban in a lawsuit against the Macomb County Health Department, after the department cited his bar twice for smoking ban violations in 2010.

Cottrell paid the first $100 fine, but refused to pay the second $500 fine, and instead opted to challenge the law. He purchased Sporty O’Toole’s two weeks before the smoking ban was approved by the Legislature in 2009. The law went into effect May 1, 2010. Cottrell’s attorney, Theodore Andris, could not be reached Friday for comment.

Smoking ban could be addictive

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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced an initiative to ban smoking from college campuses last month. This is part of the HHS goal to create a society free of tobacco-related disease and death, according to their action plan released by the HHS in 2010. Colleges who fail to enact campus-wide smoking bans and other tobacco-free policies may soon face the loss of grants and contracts from the HHS, according to the plan.

Western receives grants through a subdivision of the HHS called the National Institutes of Health, Acting Vice Provost for Research Kathleen Kitto said. Western does not forbid smoking on campus, although the university discourages smoking throughout campus walkways with signs that read “avoid smoking on walkways, paths, bus stops & when near others outdoors.” Medical histories obtained by the Student Health Center show more than 20 percent of health center patients regularly smoke tobacco.

Western policies are currently in compliance with all state and federal laws and the university is not at risk of losing funding, Kitto said. Students on Western’s campus have voiced concerns about the HHS’s actions. “It seems discriminatory against smokers,” said junior Jonathan Stone, who has been a smoker for three years. “For some, it’s a choice and for others it’s an addiction.” Smokers aren’t alone. Some non-smokers also are expressing their disapproval over the possibility of a smoking ban. “They can have smoking areas," said sophomore Michelle Mauro, a non-smoker.

"But I think the whole campus having a smoking ban is just a little extreme.” Junior Marta Wambaugh, another non-smoker, also disagrees with banning tobacco, favoring education and preventative policies instead. “I’m surprised it's anti-smoking and not just a ‘we’ll help you quit if you want to’ policy, which I think is a better way to go,” Wambaugh said. “People won’t quit unless they want to.” Such programs do exist. Western administration makes an effort to identify student tobacco use and provide education and support, especially for patients who go to the Student Health Center with respiratory complaints, SHC Director Emily Gibson wrote in an email. There are smokers who are sympathetic to the idea of a ban.

“I would be bothered by it but I would accept it,” said senior Joe Savarese, who has been smoking for five years. “I wouldn’t want my own personal habit to inhibit anybody else.” Many colleges across the nation are adopting smoking bans. There are now 814 campuses in the United States that have enacted a complete ban on smoking, according to the American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation. “Smoking is still a problem on the WWU campus despite the current rules leaving buildings smoke-free,” Gibson said. “Simply walking through a crowd in between classes, one is assaulted by second-hand smoke from those who are using the break to get their nicotine fix.”

Councilman suggests allowing some smoking at night in local taverns

Six bars that were in business before the Rolla City Council’s workplace smoking ban took effect Jan. 2 are hurting financially, according to one city councilman, who suggests smoking be allowed in those establishments after 9 p.m. “Since there was a consensus among these businesses that the smoking ban has caused significant harm, I floated the idea of a 9 p.m. exemption,” Councilman Steve Leonard, Ward 2, said in a memo he presented to the council. That stuck in the craw of Councilman Tony Bahr, Ward 6, who unleashed on Leonard.

“From now on, if you’re going to float an idea, talk to us first,” he said. Leonard said he had talked to the mayor, but Mayor Bill Jenks said, “I didn’t know you were going to float an idea to the businesses.” Asking why he should not work for a solution to a problem that six local businesses appear to be facing, Leonard said the effect of the Rolla Smoke-Free Workplace Ordinance is dire enough that more than one owner indicated the imminent loss of total investment in the business. “We’re not floating anybody anything until you talk to us,” Bahr replied emphatically.

Leonard had submitted survey forms to six bars; five of them responded that business had been hurt. Those five all responded to a survey question that they would support an exemption to allow smoking from 9 p.m. until closing for customers at least 21 years of age. The sixth indicated possible support for such an exemption. Bahr asked City Administrator John Butz if any of the six tavern owners had told him they were hurting financially to the extent described by Leonard. Butz said some owners had come by City Hall and indicated business was down, but only one said relief of some sort would help.

Mayor Jenks said confidential sales tax figures indicate that some bars were already showing a downward trend before the smoking ban took effect. “Is it the smoking ban or new businesses coming in” that has the most effect on the six bars, Bahr asked. In the opening of the discussion of the smoking ordinance’s effect, Butz said it is difficult to figure out what that effect is due to “changing economic realities, competition and reporting data.”

Bars worry about smoke-free future

Bar owners are worried while clean-air advocates are elated this week after Palmer residents decided to end indoor smoking in public. The rule change means the trio of businesses that still allowed smoking must cease doing so in January 2013 when the law takes effect. Election results won’t be official until the city council meets again, but as of Friday afternoon, 378 Palmerites favored the ban while 310 voted to oppose it. There were still 101 votes uncounted. “I wasn’t surprised,” Mary Lou Coddington, co-owner of Palmer Bar, said when about passage of Proposition 3.

“Eighty percent of our customers don’t even live in the city limits. I couldn’t even vote on it myself.” But David Cheezem, head of a group of local residents who pushed for the ordinance, said he thinks voters made the right choice. “I think Palmer can be very proud of itself now for standing up for good health and the right to breathe smoke-free air,” he said. “When you’re breathing secondhand smoke you’re not making that choice, someone else is making that choice for you.” While some in opposition described the ordinance as taking away freedoms, namely the freedom for business owners to decide whether to allow smoking, Cheezem said the issue is about protecting one particular freedom — the freedom to breathe clean air.

“Palmer is the first in the Valley to embrace this freedom and I think it’s going to continue,” Cheezem said. “We’re going to see this statewide.” Coddington said she didn’t like the way the ordinance passed, as a citizens’ initiative. “The city council voted against this very thing last year,” she said, referring to legislation that failed to pass Palmer City Council last year. “What do we have a city council for if they don’t even count?“ She said she thinks the ordinance will affect her business.

People don’t have to drive too far to have a cigarette with their drink, she said. Smoking is still allowed in Del Rois in the Butte and in Four Corners Lounge at Palmer-Wasilla Highway and Trunk Road. Plus, she said, there really wasn’t that much smoke in her building to begin with, what with the air-exchange and make-up air systems and multiple smoke-eaters she’s installed. That’s an investment down the tubes, and there’s more money to spend yet setting herself up for the new law. “It’s going to cost me money to lose money, basically, because I have to build a little place for them to smoke,” she said.

What that will be, exactly, she hasn’t quite decided yet. But Cheezem said it doesn’t have to be the case that Palmer watering holes lose money on this. “People who were opposed to it were concerned about some of the businesses here and I think we’re going to work really hard in January when it comes into effect to keep promoting Palmer and drive customers to these businesses,” he said. “As a group we’ll kind of wind down, but individuals will continue to be involved in making this a healthy and economically vibrant community.”

We seem to have adjusted to smoking ban

Fifty years ago a crusty old sergeant in the United Sates Army, who had been through combat in World War II and the Korean War, told me that if I could complete my three-year enlistment without getting hooked on coffee or cigarettes, it would be an accomplishment. And a half century later, my thanks go out to that tough old sarge for helping me set goals to start either one. The idea then was that, for one thing, there was a lot of idle time and little money, and thus a lot of sitting around and drinking of coffee in the mess hall.

And cigarettes were just a few cents a pack at the PX and, even with the meager salaries we received ($99.37 a month after about 16 months), smoking was affordable for many. I just never wanted to smoke and, despite the pleasing aroma of coffee in the morning, and living in a Sherburne County Scandinavian community where they drank coffee like the Russians consume vodka, I just didn’t like the taste. For decades I put up with secondhand smoke as I sat with friends, or sometimes unthinking people even lit up in my car until I finally started asking them not to.

I even wrote a column many years ago championing the rights of smokers, saying there was no law against it, although I felt there were many smokers who didn’t take others into consideration. Then came the Freedom To Breathe Act in Minnesota five years ago that banned smoking in bars, restaurants and public workplaces. And on the anniversary this past Monday, I couldn’t have been happier that it was passed, even though the idea went against some ideas I have about individual freedoms.

 On Monday the owner of a tavern and bowling alley in St. Louis Park who had publicly opposed the ban said that there was an instant boost to his business after the ban, and that he was now happy about the ban. He did, however, say he thinks stand-alone bars should be free to allow smoking. And he noted that his pull-tab business, and thus the business of a charitable gambling operation, had decreased dramatically. On Monday there were lots of figures being thrown around, one showing that 16 percent of Minnesota adults smoke, down from 17 percent when the ban took effect. I’m not sure how accurate the figures are but ClearWay Minnesota says there are 5,100 state deaths a year related to smoking, and that the state has $3 billion in excess medical costs a year because of smoking. The Minnesota Department of Health says the number of adults in the state exposed to secondhand smoke has fallen by 24 percent.

 And Dr. Edward Ehlinger, Minnesota Department of Health commissioner, was quoted in a Monday story in the Sacramento Bee from California that a Mayo Clinic study shows a decline in heart attacks in the state since the ban began five years ago. The American Lung Association says the tobacco industry spends $157 million a year in Minnesota marketing its products. It also says more than 6,800 Minnesota kids become daily smokers each year. Hospitals in Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas have stopped hiring smokers, and other hospitals are reported to be considering it.

 I did an informal survey Monday of some smokers and nonsmokers. The five nonsmokers predictably said they liked the ban, and three of the five smokers who said they have learned to live with the law said they are OK with the law. The other two were outspoken in disagreeing A friend, one of my heroes who quit smoking nearly 25 years ago (and quit using alcohol 36 years ago, both all on his own) told me as he rode an exercise bike Monday afternoon that he thought the ban was a good thing. “I just can’t stand to sit close to someone who is smoking,”he said. Five years after the ban went into effect, it seems to be accepted in Minnesota, although in the winter it’s not quite as accepted by smokers when they have to step outside. And the ethical question remains for me and others: Is it right to tell business owners they can’t allow smoking? We can debate that until the cows come home. But after five years it appears Minnesotans are comfortable with the ban, and the healthier atmosphere it has produced.

Smoking ban 'should apply to all' in UAE

Standing outside the emergency exit to have a cigarette, the owner of a cafe in Marina Mall looks through the glass partition and into his near-empty restaurant. Since adhering to a smoking ban in malls put into effect by the Department of Economic Development (DeD) at the beginning of July, the owner has seen a vast drop in sales. The drop, he said, is not so much to do with customers not being allowed to smoke but the inefficient way the ban has been implemented. As of July 1, any mall cafe or restaurant owners who still allowed smoking on their premises were to be given fines reaching up to Dh100,000, some cafe owners say, for repeat offenders.

Out of more than 80 food and beverage outlets, across the five biggest malls in Abu Dhabi city, 38 had not yet introduced the ban by the start of July. More than three months later, that number has dropped by three quarters. But those who have cleared the smoke from their establishments have also seen their profits disappear as a result of the DeD's inability to enforce a blanket ban, said the owner. "We don't have a problem with non-smoking. We were the first to introduce the ban, before Ramadan," said the owner, who was fined shortly before introducing no-smoking signs to his restaurant. However, with one establishment in Marina Mall still allowing smoking - and several more still ignoring the ban in other malls across the city - there is an unfair advantage.

"If I'm suffering, don't let my neighbour, in the same mall ... they should stop smoking," he said. After taking his complaint to officials, the owner was told the DeD did not have enough staff to tackle the problem all at once. Another restaurant owner said: "When a decree is issued by the government, it should be implemented ... across all restaurants, across the food and beverage operators inside all the malls." "It [the ban enforcement] should have been planned before it had started. They should have targeted all the malls in one go." Having so far been fined four times, Mr Emad Kara, the co-owner of Le Terrace, in Mushrif Mall, who says 75 per cent of his customers are smokers, has put the needs of his business above all else.

 "I cannot cover ... the rental without shisha. I cannot stop. If I stop I will lose my business," he said. Given the restaurant's outside area, the smoking ban should not apply to him, he added. In Noir Cafe, a couple of fines were enough to make them introduce the ban, said Opeola Ohiyinka, a staff member. "We sent the fines to the office but I told my manager there are still some shops in the mall that allow smoking," she said. With many customers wanting to sit down for a coffee and a cigarette, they will go elsewhere in the mall.

Having spoken with the official who gave them their last fine, however, Ms Ohiyinka was told that every food and beverage outlet in every mall had been told about the conditions. "If we had a smoking area, we would still have most customers. But we had too many fines," she said. The message is the same from other cafe and restaurant owners - whether or not they agree with the smoking ban, it must be implemented correctly. At one popular cafe, in Abu Dhabi Mall, no smoking would signal the end of the business, said a supervisor. "We have been fined twice. If we don't have smoking, we close the shop. No business, no anything."

MUM HOPES TO INSPIRE OTHER SMOKERS TO QUIT

Rachael Fisher, who smoked for 14 years before giving up last summer, realised enough was enough when her two-year-old daughter, Sarah-May, started copying her by pretending to smoke with a pen. The 25-year-old Hindpool mum said: “She was forever rooting through my handbag for cigarettes, wanting to know what they were because she’d seen me sneaking outside with them but knew I wouldn’t let her touch them.

“It was the same with lighters – she was always trying to get hold of them.” Miss Fisher also realised her 20-a-day habit was hurting her daughter Sophie, six, who became very upset after doing a smoking course at school. She said: “She just kept saying ‘Are you going to die?’. “It was the same with my niece. She started junior school and was forever on about it. “There’s no way to justify to a child why it’s OK for grown-ups to smoke but not children.” Miss Fisher had tried to quit twice before, using the replacement chewing gum and lozenges, but found they did not work for her. This time, she decided to call the Stop Smoking Service provided by Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

With the help of the scheme, which offers ongoing help, support and advice, Miss Fisher finally managed to give up. She has shared her story in a bid to get people taking part in Stoptober – a mass quit attempt launched by the Department of Health. Having given up on August 13, two days after her last birthday as a smoker, Miss Fisher is already feeling the benefits. A keen runner, she is now doing an 11-minute mile rather than a 13-minute one. She saves up to £20 per night out as she used to smoke around 40 cigarettes while socialising. But the best effect she has noticed is on her children. Miss Fisher said: “Sarah doesn’t wait for me by the baby gate for me to come back into the house because I’ve been outside smoking. “That whole thing of sneaking out for a cigarette – I don’t have to do it any more.”

Anti-tobacco campaigners vow to make ‘sin’ tax measure an election issue

Anti-cigarette smoking advocates on Tuesday threatened to embark on a campaign for higher tax on tobacco and liquor products an election issue if lawmakers will not pass a “real sin tax measure” that will cause the price of cigarettes to go up. Dr. Maricar Limpin of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Alliance-Philippines and Dr. Tony Leachon, Department of Health consultant on non-communicable diseases, along with Emer Rojas, president of New Vois Association of the Philippines, said their campaign against cigarette smoking will not stop with the passage of the so-called sin-tax law by Congress.

“Even after the 2013 elections, we will make sure that our campaign will affect the political careers of our lawmakers who will make a vote in favor of cigarette companies,” Limpin told reporters during a press conference in Quezon City. Organized by the Action for Economic Reforms, the group said members of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means seemed to be leaning towards multiple tax tiers that would not lead to higher price of cigarette products. “Cheap cigarettes will still be accessible to the youth and the poor, which will lead to higher non-communicable diseases deaths in the future,” says Leachon.

 According to Rojas, a largynectomee, or a person who has undergone laryngectomy enacting sin-tax law that will cause cigarette and liquor products to go up is necessary to discourage smoking among the poor and even children whose addiction to smoking and drinking is widely known in the Philippines. Rojas is using an electronic gadget, a simple vibrating machine which replaces his lost vocal cords, to be able to communicate verbally. “Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. It kills more people than HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined.

 And what is alarming is that 72 percent of these deaths occur in developing countries like the Philippines,” he told reporters. Limpin and Leachon are both members of the Philippine College of Physicians. Both specialize in lung care, while Rojas leads the group of cancer survivor. Also, members of the Senate’s Committee on Ways and Means, according to the group, are leaning toward the passage of low tax rates, similar to the industry’s proposal. Its implication, they said, results to lower revenues that can be used for health care for the poor.

 Former Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral, during the same press conference, urged lawmakers to do away with their lip service by enacting a real sin-tax measure that will cause price of liquor, especially cigarettes, to go up so that they will no longer be cheap and affordable. According to Cabral, the sin-tax measure should be a health measure, more than a revenue measure. The group expressed grave alarm that Sen. Ralph Recto, chairman of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, who, according to the group, is likely to come up with “a very diluted version of the bill,” which renders the health objective irrelevant and leans toward the tobacco industry’s proposals.

Jharkhand cuts VAT on kerosene; tobacco items to get costly

The Jharkhand government has reduced value added tax (VAT) on kerosene from five per cent to two per cent, while the VAT on tobacco products has been increased from 14 per cent to 20 per cent, official sources said today.

The decisions were taken at the cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Arjun Munda, yesterday. The new rate for kerosene would be Rs 13.76 per litre from the current Rs 14.19, the sources said.

Imperial Tobacco Group Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Canaccord Genuity

Canaccord Genuity reiterated their buy rating on shares of Imperial Tobacco Group (LON: IMT) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday. The firm currently has a $45.17 (2800 GBX) target price on the stock. Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Analysts at Oriel Securities Ltd reiterated a buy rating on shares of Imperial Tobacco Group in a research note to investors on Thursday, September 27th.

They now have a $46.77 price target on the stock. Separately, analysts at Barclays Capital reiterated an equalweight rating on shares of Imperial Tobacco Group in a research note to investors on Friday, September 21st. They now have a $43.95 price target on the stock. Finally, analysts at JPMorgan Chase reiterated a neutral rating on shares of Imperial Tobacco Group in a research note to investors on Thursday, September 20th. They now have a $50.44 price target on the stock. Imperial Tobacco Group opened at 2315.72 on Tuesday.

Imperial Tobacco Group has a 1-year low of GBX 2112.00 and a 1-year high of GBX 2629.00. The company’s market cap is £23.176 billion. Imperial Tobacco Group PLC (Imperial Tobacco) is a tobacco company. Through the Company’s total tobacco portfolio it provides consumers a range of brands and products, including cigarettes, fine cut tobacco, cigars and snus.

20% Off Electronic Cigarettes by Firelight Fusion End of September Sale

Lower prices should not deter vapors from looking at the Firelight Fusion e cigarette line. The Fusio e cigarette is the KR808D-1 model that has become a sensation and sold by many other top brands across the U.S. over the last few years. The Firelight brand has built a solid reputation online with the total package of great products, low prices, and a customer service department that is untouchable.

 "We already know that we have a great product with an even better company backing it, so we decided to off this sale so that both new customers and our current loyal following could benefit," States Tiffany Ellis of Firelight Fusion. "It helps with refills and all accessories for current customers and discounted prices for smokers looking to change their lifestyle for the better." The brand was rated the no 1 e cigarette company and product online by Smokers Utopia, the most brutal smokeless cigarette review site in the industry.

NHS Launches Stoptober, But Experts Say Buy Tobacco Shares

The start of thousands of smokers' journeys to quit smoking for good began on Monday but investors say there's never been a better time to buy shares in tobacco. Stoptober, backed by Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation, hopes a united effort will help many of England's eight million smokers to quit successfully. Research shows people who stop smoking for 28 days are five times more likely to stay smoke-free. Smokers who join Stoptober are given free support to help them quit, including a mobile phone app that can monitor quitters' progress and offer daily motivational texts to keep them on track.

 There is also a Stoptober Facebook page where people can exchange ideas and get additional tips and advice. But perhaps smokers looking for somewhere sensible to stick their new cash - which would have been spent on fags - could invest it in tobacco companies' shares? Ethical? Maybe not, but tobacco has long been recognised as a solid performer in terms of gaining returns, particularly during times of economic stress - typical returns range from 7% to 16%. Charles Stanley's tobacco analyst, Tina Cook, told Huffington Post UK that tobacco companies make for a good investment as its strong industry pricing power has continued to more than offset the smaller volumes of sales despite the challenging economic conditions "The sector boasts strong defensive qualities, global reach, and secure dividends underpinned by robust cash flows," she added.

 "A recent surge in news flow around tighter tobacco legislation in mature markets has been negative, witnessed by recent share price underperformance, but growth continues to be fuelled by increased trading in emerging markets." Research by Euromonitor International in 2009 showed consumers do not tend to smoke less in times of trouble and stress and that selling tobacco products is intrinsically profitable and the business is a legendary cash flow generator, making it a savvy investment choice. In addition, the traditional strength of tobacco brands means that prices generally tend to remain robust and, unlike many other products, it's not believed cigarettes will not be overtaken by new technology, despite pushes for electronic alternatives.

 Having said that, British American Tabacco has taken steps to invest more than £100m to develop smoking alternatives as new tobacco bans and higher taxes persuade more smokers to extinguish their cigs. Martin Deboo, analyst at Investec Securities, said Investec currently recommends investors to buy shares in British American Tobacco and Imperial Tobacco. The negative sentiment surrounding some of the major tobacco markets was in danger of being overplayed, he said in a recent analyst note.

 "Russia is a big market, but also a finite one at around 8% of BAT & IMT’s sales," he said, referencing fears that a ban on smoking in public places in Russia is about to come into action. Russia has one of the highest rates of smokers in the world: around 60% of Russian men and 22% of women smoke, making it the second largest tobacco market, behind China. "Plain packaging in the UK is a threat only to Imperial Tobacco," Deboo continued. "We have been arguing that the share price impact is finite and that Imperial could be a relative gainer from any move due to its strength in value cigarettes and roll your own/make your own tobacco."