The SME Circle, the European People Party’s initiative to support small and medium sized companies, has called for a strong share of the new EU Budget to be invested in promoting SMEs in Europe. The SME Circle points out that 99% of businesses in Europe are SMEs, amounting to over 20 million companies, and that these vital businesses need support now more than ever. Read More

A campaign launched this week in Yorkshire in the UK aims to tackle trade in illicit tobacco in the area. A recent survey in the region showed that 31% of smokers have tried illicit tobacco, illicit tobacco makes up 9% of the tobacco market, and that 16% of smokers feel comfortable with the sale of illicit tobacco. Read More

Les Echos has reported on the increased prices for tobacco which have come into effect this week in France. Under this plan the price of fine-cut tobacco has risen by €2, while the price of cigarettes has risen by €1. By raising the price of fine-cut this move is expected to significantly increase illegal tobacco sales and undermine the government’s tax base. Read More

The Irish Times reports that plain cigarette packaging has started appearing in Irish stores before the September deadline by which all packs will have to be standardised. Ireland is the third EU country and fourth worldwide to introduce plain packaging for cigarettes, after France, the UK and Australia. Read More

EU Observer reports that MEPs have rejected the last minute attempt by French MEP Younous Omarjee to object the Delegated Act adopted in December last year. The proposal to veto the bill was supported by seven MEPs, with 45 rejecting the veto, and one abstaining. Read More

An article in Algemeen Dagblad reports that a court in The Hague has decided that cafes, restaurants and other catering establishments may no longer have smoking areas following a lawsuit. Bernadet Naber, from the Association of the Hospitality Industry, says that a lot of money has been invested in smoking rooms and she’s not sure what is going to happen now following this announcement. Read More

Speakers at the ‘2nd Anti-Corruption Forum: Toward a Sustainable Economy in the Tobacco Sector’ in Greece last week noted that one in every five cigarettes in the Greek market is illegal, and that 50% of small enterprises in the tobacco sector have shut down. Read More

EU Observer has published an interview with Luk Joossens of the Association of European Cancer Leagues. Mr Joossens correctly points out the need to step up the fight against illegal trade in tobacco and to implement an effective system to do so. His assertion, however, that it is too late for the European Parliament to veto the bill on a track and trace system is tinged with irony: regardless of whether the Parliament vetoes the bill or not, it is highly unlikely that the track and trace system will be implemented on time for 2019. Read More

La Libre reports today that figures published by the tax authority in Belgium show that legal sales of fine-cut tobacco fell by over 17% in 2017. The government lost €76 million in revenue in total from falling tobacco sales. Read More

Over five years after tobacco plain packaging was introduced in Australia, there is no evidence that it has had any impact on smoking in the country. Instead, small producers who require packaging to distinguish their brands have suffered, while the biggest tobacco companies have simply received a larger market share. This from a Euractiv opinion piece written by Sinclair Davidson, a professor of institutional economics at RMIT University in Australia, senior research fellow at the Institute of Public Affairs, and an academic fellow at the Australian Taxpayers’ Alliance. Read More