UK

• Millions of cigarettes stockpiled amid fears Brexit will cause UK shortages
• Company stops selling some flavoured e-cigarettes in US but sales continue in UK
• Manchester: 95 shisha pipes seized from shisha café in Rusholme
• Gloucestershire: Mirror hid an illegal haul of cigarettes

International

• Thailand: plain cigarette packaging to be introduced
• Malaysia: Smoking ban at food outlets to go ahead despite protests

UK

Millions of cigarettes stockpiled amid fears Brexit will cause UK shortages

One of the world’s biggest tobacco companies is stockpiling £30m of cigarettes amid concerns Brexit may lead to the UK running out of cigarettes. Imperial Brands said it was building up UK reserves to mitigate possible supply disruptions caused by Britain’s exit from the European Union.

Imperial is the smallest of the big five global tobacco companies. Others include US listed companies Philip Morris and Altria, FTSE 100 compatriot British American Tobacco and Tokyo-based Japan Tobacco.

Source: Telegraph, 6 November 2018

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Company stops selling some flavoured e-cigarettes in US but sales continue in UK

Vaping products that have been pulled from sale in the US over fears about underage buyers will still be sold at Sainsbury’s in the UK. The US e-cigarette company Juul, which struck a deal with the British supermarket earlier this month, has stopped the sale of several of its flavoured cartridges in the US.

The company has also stopped using social media sites including Twitter and Instagram to promote its products in an attempt to extinguish criticism that it markets its products to children. It also strengthened its age verification processes to restrict sales to those who are under 21 years old.

However, two of the flavours it has removed from sale in the US remain on sale at Sainsbury’s. The Mango and Royal Creme pods, used to add flavour to Juul’s rechargeable e-cigarettes, will not be removed in the UK, a spokesman said.

Vaping among teens in the UK remains low with less than 1% of non-smoking teens reporting current use.

Source: Telegraph, 15 November 2018

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Manchester: 95 shisha pipes seized from shisha café in Rusholme

Manchester City Council is set to prosecute the owners of a Rusholme shisha café following their repeated breaches of the law. Ninety-five shisha pipes have been seized from the premises in Wilmslow Road.

The owners could now be fined up to £2,500 if successfully prosecuted in magistrates’ court. During a previous visit the owners of the café had four pipes confiscated and were warned further action would be taken if they continued breaking the law.

Two fixed penalty notices for £50 were issued during the seizure for smoking indoors in a smoke free place. One of the individuals fined was subsequently arrested by Greater Manchester Police in connection to a separate offence.

Source: Lovin Manchester, 14 November 2018

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Gloucestershire: Mirror hid an illegal haul of cigarettes

Gloucestershire trading standards officers have discovered £1,700 of illegal tobacco stashed behind a mirror in a Cheltenham shop. Officers found 215 packs of cigarettes and 91 pouches of hand rolling tobacco. Counterfeit versions of Richmond, Mayfair and Amber Leaf were found alongside, Richman, Marlboro Gold and Cutters Choice.

They had visited the store to follow up a previous test purchase where an undercover trading standards officer was able to purchase a pack of counterfeit cigarettes for £3.50.

Source: Punchline Gloucester, 15 November 2018

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International

Thailand: plain cigarette packaging to be introduced

The Public Health Ministry on Thailand has approved draft regulation which would mandate plain cigarette packaging and update the compulsory health warning pictures which are already present on packets.

The Public Health Minister said the approval came from the ministry’s national tobacco control committee. Thailand would be the first Asian nation to introduce plain packaging. A date has not been set for when the regulations might come into force.

Source: Bangkok Post, 14 November 2018

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Malaysia: Smoking ban at food outlets to go ahead despite protests

The Health Minister of Malaysia has stated that the government will not compromise on the upcoming smoking ban in restaurants, food outlets and hawker stalls as it is in the public interest. On Monday, three associations representing more than 20,000 restaurant owners held news conferences to express their dissatisfaction with the move by the Health Ministry to introduce a ban on smoking at food outlets from on January 1, 2019.

The Health Minister said: “We are not ready to compromise in this issue. Smokers will have to find other places so that they can smoke as much as they want… Our business is to ensure that public eateries are safe especially for children, the elderly and (pregnant) women as it will affect those around the smokers with passive smoking.”

Source: Daily Express (Malaysia), 15 November 2018

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A briefing summarising the impact of the UK’s vote to leave the European Union on tobacco control laws.