煙草在線據《衛(wèi)報》報道編譯 據國會的報告稱,英國贏得了抵制針對可憐的吸煙者和兒童以及拒交國庫稅收的煙草走私者的斗爭。
2000年,吸食的五分之一的卷煙來自黑市。據吸煙與健康的所有議會團體關于非法煙草貿易的報道,到2010-2011年,走私者的卷煙市場份額已降至9%。
國會議員小組和相關小組的調查發(fā)現,同期,源于走私者的英國手卷煙草的市場份額從60%下降到38%。
報告稱,英國稅務及海關總署和英國邊境署采取的聯合行動,已經打亂了走私者努力引進和分銷他們產品的工作,因為合伙伙伴有當地的警察隊伍、議會和國民保健服務組織。
自由民主黨議員小組主席斯蒂芬·威廉姆斯表示,這種成功反駁了該行業(yè)聲稱在英國對它們產品征收高稅收促進了非法煙草供應的說法。
他說,制造商聲稱,迫使卷煙在標準化包裝內銷售會增加非法貿易是“自私的,有時看似是虛偽的行業(yè)游說”。
國會議員稱,歐盟同大煙草公司簽訂的減少走私的法律協議,也有助于減少走私產品。
他們的報告強調,在英國以前非常容易獲得黑市煙草,一定程度上是由于制造商故意出口高于其他國家想要數量的卷煙,知道很多卷煙將會被走私回英國。
癌癥研究中心的英國政策主管莎拉·伍爾諾夫說:“這份報告進一步證明,在制定旨在減少吸煙的毀滅性影響的衛(wèi)生政策方面,不應該聽取煙草行業(yè)的意見。”
煙草制造商協會聲稱,最近的數據顯示,“英國未納稅卷煙的消費稅水平已經從2011年的17%增加到了2012年的21%,”上周(3.17-3.23)來自預算責任辦公室的數字顯示,政府預計在2012-2013年收到的煙草稅收不足2億英鎊。
協會的發(fā)言人聲稱調查有偏見,因為它沒有給煙草業(yè)召開一個公平的聽證會,也沒有提及煙草公司對減少走私的貢獻。
Tobacco Smugglers Losing UK Market Share
Britain is winning the war against tobacco smugglers who target cheap cigarettes at poor smokers and children and deny the Treasury revenue, according to a parliamentary report.
In 2000, one in five of cigarettes smoked came from the black market. But by 2010-11 traffickers' share of the cigarette market had fallen to 9%, according to the report on the illicit tobacco trade by the all parliamentary group on smoking and health.
Over the same period, the share of the UK's hand-rolled tobacco market originating with smugglers fell from 60% to 38%, an inquiry by the group of MPs and peers found.
Joint action by HM Revenue & Customs and the UK Border Agency has disrupted smugglers' efforts to bring in and distribute their products, as have partnerships involving local police forces, councils and NHS organisations, the report says.
Stephen Williams, the Liberal Democrat MP who chairs the group, said the success disproved the industry's claims that high taxes on their products in the UK boosted the supply of illegal tobacco.
He said manufacturers' claims that forcing cigarettes to be sold in standardised packaging would increase the illicit trade were "self-interested and at times seemingly disingenuous industry lobbying".
Legal agreements the EU has concluded with the big cigarette firms to reduce trafficking has also helped make fewer available, the parliamentarians say.
Their report highlights how the previously easy availability of black market tobacco in the UK was partly due to producers deliberately exporting more cigarettes than were wanted to other countries, knowing that many would be smuggled back into Britain.
Sarah Woolnough, Cancer Research UK's policy director, said: "This report is further evidence that the tobacco industry should not be listened to when developing health policies aimed at reducing the devastating impact of smoking."
The Tobacco Manufacturers Association claimed that more recent data showed that "the level of cigarettes consumed that are not UK tax paid has risen from 17% in 2011 to 21% in 2012" and that figures from the Office of Budget Responsibility last week showed the government expected to receive £200m less in tobacco revenue in 2012-13.
A spokesman for the association claimed the inquiry was biased because it had not given a fair hearing to the industry and did not mention firms' contributions to reducing smuggling. Enditem
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