Australia plans cigarette brand ban

Australia is a step closer to becoming the first nation to introduce plain packaging for cigarettes.

Two bills have been passed by Parliament in the lower house, and are now heading to the upper house. If they receive smooth passage, as is expected, it will pave the way for a ban on tobacco companies using product branding.

The overall aim is to reduce smoking rates, which cost the country 31.5 billion Australian dollars (£20.3 billion) annually in healthcare and lost productivity costs.

Under the proposals, planned to be introduced next year, all cigarette packages in Australia will be free of logos. Instead, the brand name will be printed in a plain font.

All packets would also be the same colour, olive green, with graphic health warnings included.

Health minister Nicola Roxon said the move is a "courageous first step" by Parliament.

Tobacco companies have reacted angrily to the plans. Ms Roxon said the companies would have to live with it, while health charities pointed out that packs are designed to be attractive and communicate the "personality" of a brand, and that just as designer products are social cues to style, status, values and character, cigarettes can be "badge products".

"There isn't any safe amount of tobacco that you can smoke. It will kill you eventually and we obviously want to make sure that that message is heard loud and clear," said Ms Roxon.

Robin Hewings, Cancer Research UK's tobacco control policy manager, welcomed the news.

"It is great news that all Australian political parties have voted for cigarettes to be put in plain packs," he said.

"The current packs are attractive to teenagers unlike new unbranded packaging in a standard colour with prominent health warnings. The Government is planning to consult on plain packaging for the UK so we should follow Australia's lead as soon as possible."

Quit Smoking to Save Money

Smoking cigarettes can be a very expensive habit. Money spent on cigarettes each week could have gone towards groceries, bills, going out to eat, or a host of other items that could be added into your budget. Spending money on smoking can directly impact a family budget, especially if the budget is tight already. Many people decide to quit smoking because of the financial burdens it places on their family.
To feel the continuing mood enhancement that the nicotine in cigarettes provides, many smokers smoke more than one pack per day. A person may begin smoking only a couple of cigarettes per day, but eventually they need more to feel the nicotine effects. What started out as a cigarette here and a cigarette there turns into a pack, a pack and a half, two packs a day, and so on.
To calculate how much you spend on cigarettes per week determines how many cigarettes you smoke per month and then multiply that by 12. If your pack of cigarettes is generally $4.00 and you smoke 2 packs per day, you are roughly spending $3,000 a year on cigarettes, lighters, etc. If you were to quit smoking your budget would have an additional three grand per year added to it. That could pay for all sorts of nice things that you could afford.
If you were to take the money you were saving from not smoking and place it into a 401k plan you could retire with thousands upon thousands of dollars just from the money you were going to spend on cigarettes plus interest.
Another benefit of not smoking that will save you money is with insurance costs. Most insurance companies will not even insure a smoker. The insurance companies that will cover you may charge outrageous premiums and have high deductibles. Even then they may not cover some medical conditions you incur due to your cigarette use.
If you smoke in your car you have greatly depreciated the value of it. A non-smoker can tell quickly that a car has been smoked in. For smokers it is hard to smell cigarette smoke because not only have they gotten used to the smell of smoke, but the harmful effects of smoking have decreased their ability to smell.
Not only that, but many companies across the US are putting bans on smoking on their premises and have even gone so far as to not hire employees that smoke. You could be missing some wonderful job opportunities because of you cigarette addiction.
The time to quit smoking is now.