Plain packaging in Australia, 5 years on: We told you so

Christopher Snowdon
1 December 2017
Lifestyle Economics

Plain packaging in Australia, 5 years on: We told you so

Today is the fifth anniversary of the introduction of plain packaging of tobacco in Australia. Don’t expect much in the way of celebrations. In the first twelve months of the branding ban, the number of cigarettes sold in Australia rose for the first time in years and smoking rates proceeded to flatline for the next ... Continue reading
Christopher Snowdon
1 December 2017
Share
Leave a comment on Plain packaging in Australia, 5 years on: We told you so

The Nanny State Index – whatever happened to ‘liberal Britain’

Chris Snowdon
10 May 2017
Lifestyle Economics

The Nanny State Index – whatever happened to ‘liberal Britain’

‘Until 1914’, wrote the historian A.J.P. Taylor, ‘a sensible, law-abiding Englishmen could pass through life and hardly notice the existence of the state’. What a difference a century makes. The Nanny State Index, published by the Institute of Economic Affairs today, shows that the UK has risen up the league table and is now second ... Continue reading
Chris Snowdon
10 May 2017
Share
Leave a comment on The Nanny State Index – whatever happened to ‘liberal Britain’

Economic theory – and common sense – suggest that plain cigarette packaging won’t work

Madeline Grant
28 September 2016
Lifestyle Economics

Economic theory – and common sense – suggest that plain cigarette packaging won’t work

Plain packaging has arrived. As of May this year, all cigarette packets must be standardised, with the same murky green colour, font, size, and alignment of text on boxes. Over two thirds of every cigarette box will now be devoted to graphic health warnings. 10-packs, once the preserve of the social smoker, will also be ... Continue reading
Madeline Grant
28 September 2016
Share
7 Comments on Economic theory – and common sense – suggest that plain cigarette packaging won’t work

Plain packaging of tobacco will simply boost the black market

Stephanie Lis
23 January 2015
Lifestyle Economics

Plain packaging of tobacco will simply boost the black market

Last night we learned that the government plans to change the law to ensure that cigarettes are sold in plain packages. The ostensible goal of reducing the number of smokers may be well-intentioned, but in practice this will be a policy with a negligible health impact and extremely worrying repercussions for black market activity. International ... Continue reading
Stephanie Lis
23 January 2015
Share

Ireland, plain packaging and cognitive dissonance

Christopher Snowdon
28 May 2013

Ireland, plain packaging and cognitive dissonance

Plain packaging for tobacco appears to have been rejected by the UK's Coalition government, just as it was rejected by the previous Labour government, but the idea continues to appeal to politicians who wish to make a name for themselves. The latest figure to express an interest is Irish Health Minister James Reilly. It is ... Continue reading
Christopher Snowdon
28 May 2013
Share
8 Comments on Ireland, plain packaging and cognitive dissonance

Why the plain packaging consultation is deeply flawed

Patrick Basham and John Luik
9 July 2012

Why the plain packaging consultation is deeply flawed

The long-awaited UK consultation on plain packaging was announced by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley in April and will end next month. The Conservatives, who had strongly opposed both tobacco display bans and plain packaging while they were in opposition, have apparently, now that they are in government, discovered the ‘truth’ about plain packaging. Despite the ... Continue reading
Patrick Basham and John Luik
9 July 2012
Share
6 Comments on Why the plain packaging consultation is deeply flawed

Plain packaging laws undermine intellectual property

Chris Snowdon
17 April 2012

Plain packaging laws undermine intellectual property

Yesterday saw the US Chamber of Commerce, the TransAtlantic Business Dialogue, the Emergency Committee for American Trade, the National Association of Manufacturers, the United States Council for International Business and the National Foreign Trade Council warn of the threat to intellectual property if the British government decides to mandate ‘plain packaging’ for cigarettes. They join ... Continue reading
Chris Snowdon
17 April 2012
Share
7 Comments on Plain packaging laws undermine intellectual property