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“
Key
health groups have urged stronger action against misleading tobacco
branding, saying thousands of Australian consumers are still being
deceived by the consumer fraud over “light” and “mild”
cigarettes. “Light” brands are still on sale despite a finding
by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (the Commission)
that the brands are misleading and deceptive.
The
Commission in May ended a three year investigation into “light”
and “mild” cigarettes with an agreement by Australia’s biggest
two tobacco companies, Philip Morris and British American Tobacco, to
remove the descriptors from all packets by mid-year and to contribute
$8m to an education campaign to help remedy the harm.
However
the third major company, Imperial Tobacco, is yet to agree to end
their use of the deceptive terms or to pay for a campaign to remedy
the harm. The Commission has not yet announced whether it will take
court action against Imperial. During
the past week “light” brands manufactured by both BAT and Imperial
have been on display and purchased by Action on Smoking and Health
(ASH) Australia in a number of Sydney shops. “These
brands are continuing to mislead thousands of Australian consumers,”
says ASH CEO Anne Jones. Adds Dr Andrew Ellerman,
Chairman of The Cancer Council Australia’s Tobacco Issues Committee:
“Allowing this conduct to drag on is saying to the tobacco industry
that if you are powerful enough you can get away with deceiving
consumers for more than twenty years.” Millions of Australian
smokers have been encouraged to switch to light/mild brands in the
mistaken belief that these products are somehow less harmful than other brands. Research shows most of these smokers
still hold this mistaken belief. “The
$8m handed over by Philip Morris and BAT,” says Andrew Ellerman,
“will fall far short of what’s needed to correct this dangerous
illusion and undo decades of misleading conduct over light brands that
have contributed to thousands of preventable deaths.”
Says
Anne Jones: “The Commission is acting like a ‘toothless tiger’
and sending the wrong message to the business world by not taking
legal action under the Trade Practices Act.”
This is a joint media release from The Cancer Council Australia and ASH Australia Comment: Media info: Stafford Sanders Ph. (02) 9334-1823 m. 0412-070-194
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Page last updated 23/8/05 |
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