Australia: Plain Packaging Plays into Hands of Criminals

Source from:  Tobacco Reporter 09/20/2012

Imperial Tobacco says that Australia's plain packaging laws will play into the hands of those who profit from counterfeit tobacco. The High Court of Australia yesterday rejected a legal challenge by tobacco manufacturers against the introduction of plain packaging for tobacco products from the beginning of December. The legal challenge argued that this legislation was in contravention of the Australian Constitution, which allows the government to acquire property only on fair terms. The Court will give its reasons for rejecting this argument at a later date. "This decision plays into the hands of the criminal gangs who profit from counterfeit tobacco; their job will be significantly easier now that all tobacco products will be sold in the same generic packaging," Imperial said in a note posted on its website. "The illegal tobacco trade is a significant problem in Australia and we expect the situation to worsen considerably as a result of this legislation, placing further pressures on retailers and government tax revenues. "Tobacco packaging has never been identified as a reason why people start, or continue, to smoke, and there is no credible evidence to support the notion that plain packs will reduce smoking levels. "Our intellectual property rights are robustly supported by trade mark treaties and laws at an international, European and national level and we don’t believe the Court’s decision in Australia will have any legal implications in other markets. "We will continue to defend our legitimate commercial right to utilise our trade marks to differentiate our brands from those of our competitors." Enditem