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EUROPEAN NEWS BULLETIN
Globalink's European News Bulletin follows
Robert Weissman
Essential Information | Internet: rob@essential.org
EUROPEAN NEWS BULLETIN - EU9822 08 JUNE 1998
CONTENTS:
EUROPE - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES
FINLAND: Parliament on smoking restrictions.
FRANCE: Young people smoke less.
SPAIN: Anti-smoking programme a success.
SPAIN: Extended monopoly for Tabacalera.
SWEDEN: Swedish Match says no to a compromise.
UK: Adverts for tobacco and alcohol 'may encourage teenagers to
take drugs'.
UK: Remove these crazy toys.
UK: Tobacco advertising directive - comments from ASH on implementing
legislation.
UK: Tobacco companies in court move over smoking.
INTERNATIONAL - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES
USA: One more good reason not to smoke.
USA: Philip Morris will pay $105 million to settle suits.
EUROPE - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES
FINLAND: Parliament on smoking restrictions.
The Finnish Parliament's Committee for Social Policy has recommended
to the Government the preparation of a legislative proposal to
restrict smoking in restaurants and hotels. According to the first
draft of the legislative proposal, smoking would be restricted in
restaurants with a serving area of more than 50 square meters. In
these restaurants, a maximum of 50% of the area could be reserved
for smoking clients, with the proviso that tobacco smoke should not
be able to spread to the non-smoking area.
Source: Hufvudstadsbladet (XFC) 21 May 1998 p.6
Language: SWEDISH No. 06634288
Source: Information Access Company 05/6/98
FRANCE: Young people smoke less.
The French Health Education Committee, CFES, has published the
results of its 1997 barometer on smoking among young people. The
survey involved 4,115 young people in the 12 - 19 age range. The
results revealed that 28.8% of young people smoked in 1997. In
the 12 to 18 age range 25% smoked in 1997, down from 45% in 1977.
They smoked an average of seven cigarettes per day (3.4 cigarettes
per day for 12 year olds, and 9.4 cigarettes per day for 19 year
olds). The average age for smoking initiation rose from 12 to 13
in 1980 to 15 in 1997. However, the CFES recommends using caution
in interpreting these figures, under-reporting of smoking remains
a possibility because of the pressure on young people not to smoke.
The President of the National Medical Insurance Fund for Salaried
Workers, CNAMTS, has announced that in 1998 and 1999, FFr 110 will
be used to combat smoking, via the National Health Information,
Education and Prevention Fund, while the Secretary of State for
Health has announced that the Government will allocate FFr 50mn of
its tobacco tax revenue for this purpose. He also wants priority to
be given to programmes that help smokers to give up smoking and
for the 1992 law designed to protect non-smokers in public places,
to be more strictly enforced.
Source: Le Quotidien du MZdecin (XNV) 25 May 1998 p.36
Language: FRENCH No. 06634153
Source: Information Access Company 05/6/98
SPAIN: Anti-smoking programme a success.
According to the General Council of the Spanish School of
Pharmacists, there has been a 40% success rate for smokers trying
to give up smoking through the Smoking Prevention and Treatment
campaign launched over a year ago. Of the 163 smokers participating
in the scheme, men accounted for around 60% and women 40%. The
average age for participating men was 42, while the average age
for women was 38. According to the director of the programme at
the La Princesa hospital in Madrid, around 70% of Spanish smokers
want to give up smoking.
Source: La Gaceta de los Negocios (ZDA) 26 May 1998 p.40
Language: SPANISH No. 06634533
Source: Information Access Company 05/6/98
SPAIN: Extended monopoly for Tabacalera.
The new Spanish tobacco law, which came into force on the 25th
May 1998, extends for an additional four year period the monopoly
of Tabacalera, the Spanish tobacco company, in the selling of postal
and fiscal stamps. The monopoly on tobacco retail sales is still
maintained. The law forbids surcharge sales (that is, through vending
machines) for tobacco producers, importers or distributors, other
than Tabacalera's subsidiary Serventa. Tabacalera will decrease its
stamp sales commissions by 1% to 2% but it will increase its
tobacconist commission from 2% to 4%.
Source: La Gaceta de los Negocios (ZDA) 25 May 1998 p.7
Language: SPANISH No. 06633256
Source: Information Access Company 05/6/98
SWEDEN: Swedish Match says no to a compromise.
The Swedish tobacco company Swedish Match has refused to enter
into an amicable settlement with the company Control Alt Delete,
the latter had registered "swedishmatch.com" as its Internet
site address. Control Alt Delete had asked Swedish Match to donate
SEK1 (US$0.1) to the Swedish Cancer Fund as compensation for Control
Alt Delete giving up the Internet address "swedishmatch.com" to the
tobacco company. However, Swedish Match has refused to do this.It
has sued Control Alt Delete for trade mark violation and is demanding
damages worth several million SEK unless Control Alt Delete concedes
to its demands.
Source: Finanstidningen (XTB) 27 May 1998 p.18
Language: SWEDISH No. 06634662
Source: Information Access Company 05/6/98
UK: Adverts for tobacco and alcohol 'may encourage teenagers
to take drugs'.
A Home Office reports warns that heavy advertising of cigarettes
and alcohol may be encouraging young people to consider experi-
menting with illegal drugs. According to the new report from the
Home Office's Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, tobacco and
alcohol advertising can be criticisedfor bringing children into
contact with drug culture. "Young people live in a society which
heavily advertises alcohol and tobacco.... For many young people,
alcohol, tobacco and illicit drugs inhabit one and the same world,"
the report notes. It also says that studies have shown that those
who drink and smoke are more likely to try illegal drugs, and
highlights the strong link between cheap, available drugs, deprivation
and high drugs use. Health education campaigns are urged to re-focus
their messages. Youth culture, with its focus on raves, clubs and
festivals and where drugs are available,should not be deplored but
embraced by drug prevention efforts.
Source: The Guardian 03/6/98; The Independent 03/6/98; Evening Standard
02/6/98; Daily Mail 03/6/98
UK: Remove these crazy toys.
A Hampshire shop has been criticised in the local paper for stocking
toy cigarettes for children. The Basingstoke and North Hampshire
Gazette newspaper has now launched a front page campaign to have the
toys - which emit smoke-like powder and glow when puffed and are made
by the Surprise Novelty Toy Co., in Leeds - removed from retailers'
shelves. ASH condemned the products, urging retailers not to stock them.
Source: The Basingstoke and North Hampshire Gazette 01/6/98
UK: Tobacco advertising directive - comments from ASH on implementing
legislation.
ASH has called on the UK Government to implement the European
Union (EU) Advertising Directive under domestic laws earlier than
by the timetable set out in the Directive. In a communiqu‚ to the
Minister for Public Health, Tessa Jowell, ASH warned that using all
the available time allowed by the Directive to phase out tobacco
sponsorship of sporting events would simply defer the day that the
sports would begin to search for replacement sponsorship. At the
same time, there was also the danger that the voluntary agreements
and COMATAS (the Government and tobacco industry appointed Committee
for Monitoring Agreements on Tobacco Advertising and Sponsorship)
would cease to function adequately, given that the threat of
legislation could no longer be used to secure voluntary co-operation.
In effect the sponsors would have little to lose by ignoring the
voluntary agreements as the threat of legislation that underpinned
the agreements was now a reality. ASH urged the Government to retain
a strong bargaining position during the five to eight year period
over which tobacco sponsorship is to be phased out. ASH suggested
that it could do this by banning all tobacco advertising and
sponsorship by 31 December 1999, but allow tobacco sponsorship of
domestic sports and arts events to continue longer on a case by case
basis, subject to reducing total funds and voluntary restraints.
ASH also made recommendations regarding:
-Timing and conditionalities of the sponsorship ban.
-Formula One and world level events.
-Indirect marketing.
-Advertising at the point of sale.
-Clarification of the scope of the Directive.
-Enforcement, offences and penalties.
Source: Action on Smoking and Health 27/5/98; Marketing 04/6/98
UK: Tobacco companies in court move over smoking.
The four main tobacco companies in the UK, (British American
Tobacco, Gallaher, Imperial and Rothmans) have applied for a
judicial review of the Government appointed Scientific Committee
on Tobacco and Health (SCOTH) which reported in March this year.
The SCOTH report recommended a ban on smoking in public places
and a complete ban on tobacco advertising. Representatives of the
four tobacco companies said they were challenging theprocess by
which the Committee reached its conclusions. They claimed that
the industry was not consulted by the Committee and hope that if
successful the judicial review will mean that the Committee will
have to revise or withdraw its report. The Government would then
be unable to use the report as a guide for policy making. But
tobacco industry officials have admitted that even if successful
the action was unlikely to affect implementation of policy as the
Government's policy was based on European Union directives and
ministers have stated that they want only a voluntary ban on smoking
in public places. Commenting on the move by the tobacco companies,
Clive Bates, the Director of ASH, said: "It's not at all surprising
- the last desperate efforts of the King Canutes of tobacco trying
to hold back a tide of fact and evidence that profoundly threatens
their business. Over the last fifty years they have systematically
deceived the public over smoking and health the addictiveness of
nicotine and their marketing to children. Now that opinion has
decisively moved against them, they have obviously concluded the
best form of defence is attack". He added: "Later this month
(25th June) ASH will publish a comprehensive review of the tobacco
industry documents that have been released through litigation in
the United States. These show what the tobacco companies knew and
how they behaved in the key contentious areas of smoking and health,
addiction and marketing to children. We believe that anyone looking
objectively at these documents will be appalled. They back up the
independent findings of SCOTH and show the Government is right to
take strong action against these companies.
Source: Financial Times 04/6/98; Daily Telegraph 04/6/98; The
Independent 04/6/98; ASH press release 03/6/98
INTERNATIONAL - SPECIFIC COUNTRIES
USA: One more good reason not to smoke.
Passive smoking should be considered a risk factor for children
having a general anaesthetic, say Eric Skolnick (Columbia-Presbyterian
Medical Center, NY, USA) and colleagues. The researchers measured
urinary cotinine, a measure of exposure to cigarette smoke, in 499
children having a general anaesthetic. Airway complications occurred
in 42% of patients with urinary cotinine values greater than 40 ng/mL
but in only 24% of children with values of less than 10 ng/mL. The
study was published in the medical journal Anesthesiology 1998; 88:
1144-53. (Author abstract.)
Source: The Lancet 1998; 351 30/5/98
USA: Philip Morris will pay $105 million to settle suits.
In the US, the Philip Morris tobacco corporation has agreed to
pay $105 million to certain of its shareholders to settle a class
action securities fraud lawsuit, including one lawsuit reinstated
last year in which shareholders claimed that Philip Morris misled
investors by denying that nicotine is addictive. The settlement also
includes damages for a separate class of shareholders who claimed
that the tobacco company misled them in advance of reducing its
price for premium brands in April 1993, causing its stock price
to plummet. The suit reinstated last year, was filed in April 1994
following hearings before the Government's House Subcommittee on
Health and the Environment. At the hearing, Philip Morris's then
President William Campbell and six other chief tobacco executives
testified under oath that nicotine was not addictive. The lawsuit
claimed that Philip Morris misrepresented its own internal research
which indicated that nicotine was addictive because public disclosure
would have prompted regulatory action by the Food and Drug Admini-
stration which in turn would have caused its stock price to fall.
Tobacco industry analyst Gary Black, of Sanford C. Bernstein and Co.,
believes that Philip Morris's decision to settle the suit reflects
its unease over the past statements made by tobacco executives about
the addictiveness of nicotine which contradict the more recent
statements the industry has made on the issue. According to Mr Black,
after denying that nicotine was addictive four years ago, company
executives have since testified before Congress and in court that
it might be. The threat of having those inconsistencies examined
in public at a time when the US Congress is considering national
legislation to regulate tobacco, was in Mr Black's view, seen by
Philip Morris as counterproductive. Philip Morris has indicated that
the settlement money would go into a fund for payments to all
stockholders who bought common shares between 11 June 1991, and
6 May 1994.
Source: Wall Street Journal (Europe) 08/6/98; International Herald
Tribune 08/6/98
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