Health Ministry stresses raising tobacco taxes
Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination Joint Secretary Dr Amir Sheikh on Wednesday stressed the need to review the existing tobacco tax structure in Pakistan and to develop an action plan to increase taxes on tobacco products in line with the recommendations of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).
He expressed these views during a meeting of the technical working group on tobacco taxation. Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Additional Commissioner Badruddin Ahmad Qureshi, Secretary Muhammad Zaheer Qureshi, Tobacco Control Cell Director Muhammad WaqasTarar, The Union Technical Officer Dr Fouad Aslam, World Bank Senior Health Specialist Dr InamulHaq, World Health Organisation Representative Shahzad Alam, Tobacco Control Cell Technical Coordinator Dr Ziauddin Islam and Project Coordinator Muhammad Javed attended the meeting.
Lear MoreMore levies may keep youth away from cigarettes
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) will be launching electronic monitoring system in early months of next year for monitoring production of cigarettes. A meeting of the technical working group on tobacco taxation was held under the chairmanship of Dr Amir Sheikh, joint secretary (admin), ministry of national health services, regulations & coordination.
Muhammad Zaheer Qureshi, secretary FBR, told the participants that FBR will be launching electronic monitoring system in early months of next year for monitoring production of cigarettes. He said that by implementing two-tier system, there would be maximum increase in tobacco tax revenues up to Rs 12.5 billion annually.
http://nation.com.pk/islamabad/27-Nov-2014/more-levies-may-keep-youth-away-from-cigarettes
Lear MoreCigarettes smuggling reaches lower level this year in September
The black market for cigarettes in Romania went slightly down to 15.4% in September, compared to 17% in July, according to the recent data provided by research company Novel. This is the lowest level registered this year, but it’s higher however than the 13% annual average registered in 2012 and 2013. “The West region is the most affected by illegal trade of cigarettes in September, the black market registering a fulminant increase in this area – by 16 percentage points, to 42.1%,” said Marian Marcu, manager of Novel Research.
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ICE, industry warn public of holiday scams
Washington, DC – A group of federal partners at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)-led National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) teamed with industry and nonprofit organizations to warn consumers today to be wary of holiday shopping scams designed to dupe them into buying counterfeit products.
Federal agencies will be conducting increased operations during the holiday season targeting the importation and distribution of counterfeit and pirated products. Enforcement operations will be conducted by special agents, officers and import specialists from ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA OCI).
Lear MoreSpanish State Tv Apologises For Campo Smuggling Programme
The chairman of Spanish state broadcaster RTVE, José Antonio Sánchez, has apologised to residents of the Campo de Gibraltar for a programme on tobacco smuggling broadcast recently.
The segment on TVE 1’s ‘ ‘T con T’ programme offered a dire image of La Linea and its residents, to the extent that it drew a complaint from the controversial PP mayor of Algeciras and MP for the region, Jose Ignacio Landaluce. Speaking to the parliamentary committee that oversees RTVE’s programming yesterday, Sr Sánchez said he was ‘sorry’ for the programme.“I don’t agree with stereotypes and the generalisations produced in this programme were regrettable, and I apologise on behalf of all of us who work at RTVE,” he said.
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Action needed against new risks in counterfeiting
Companies including producers, wholesalers and retailers should assess their insurance and clarify the coverage they have against the risks posed by counterfeits.That’s one of the key recommendations to come from a new Zurich report examining the growing risks associated with counterfeit products.According to the report – Counterfeit products: new risks in global value chains – the globalised economy, digitalisation and investment by organised crime groups are resulting in a rapid rise in the production and organisational quality of counterfeiting.
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Since when do we believe the tobacco industry?
It’s a dark day indeed when a monopoly industry lobby and a media-sponsored organisation collude, and both agree with draconian government policy. That happened when Crime Line, an initiative of the Primedia Group, publicly supported the Tobacco Institute of Southern Africa during its conference about the fight against “illicit” cigarettes.
Despite the appearance of a hostile relationship, the tobacco industry and the government are partners in an unholy alliance. The industry is a massive cash cow for the government, and in return, it gets protection against upstart competition.
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Illegal cigarettes cost SA R20bn
Johannesburg – South Africans should think twice about where they get their next tobacco product as the sale of illegal cigarettes has cost the country R20 billion in the past four years.The figure was released by the Tobacco Institute of Southern Africa (Tisa) during a three-day conference in Cape Town.The conference is attended by local and international law enforcement agencies who are sharing ideas on how to stop the scourge of trade in illicit products.
http://www.iol.co.za/business/news/illegal-cigarettes-cost-sa-r20bn-1.1786225#.VHa8fdKUfNc
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ENSURE AUTHENTICITY: UGG® Australia Helps Consumers Protect Themselves Against Counterfeit Product this Holiday Season
UGG® Australia (UGG) has re-launched its online consumer counterfeit education section with a specially created “Ensure Authenticity” link http://counterfeit.uggaustralia.com/ to emphasize the importance of buying genuine UGG Australia products from authorized retailers this holiday season.
UGG is committed to protecting shoppers from counterfeit UGG products that are being sold as genuine. Many consumers may not know the inhumane and negative implications the $600 billion dollar counterfeit industry has on the economy, environment and their own health. Every day, UGG works with worldwide customs authorities and law enforcement agencies to find and stop the shipment of counterfeit goods.
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Interpol operation seizes millions in counterfeit goods
Around 55 million zlotys-worth of goods have been seized as part of Operation Black Poseidon, a pan-European anti-counterfeiting action organised by Interpol with the cooperation of national police forces.
Black Poseidon was undertaken in October by eleven participating European states, with counterfeit alcohol, tobacco goods, electronics and clothes being seized by Polish police forces, Border Guards and Customs officers.IwonaKuc from the Central Police HQ told the PAP news agency that the operation targeted economic crime, and that it “particularly aimed at groups dealing with the trade and smuggling of counterfeit products”.
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