Malaysia - Health Ministry's proposal to ban the sale of 14-stick cigarette packs beginning June 1, 2010..

April 9, 2010 - KUALA LUMPUR, April 7 (Bernama) -- Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) today lauded the Health Ministry's proposal to ban the sale of 14-stick cigarette packs beginning June 1, 2010 to deter youths, especially schoolchildren, from picking up the smoking habit, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.

Federation of Malaysian Consumers Association (Fomca) secretary-general Muhammad Sha'ani Abdullah said Fomca would provide full support to the government's efforts to prevent cigarette-smoking from becoming a habit among new smokers, especially teenagers. The Health Minister said only the 20-stick packs, which were more expensive, would be sold. “This, hopefully, will put youths off buying cigarettes,” he said in reply to Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli (PAS – Kuala Krai).

More no-smoking areas would also be created, Liow said. The ministry, he added, was considering additional steps to make smokers, especially the younger generation, quit the habit. "Besides, we had made a similar suggestion in 2007 but the industry players then were not ready because they claimed to have plenty of stocks," he told Bernama here today.

Among the measures taken was increasing the price of cigarettes, a move which took effect on Jan 1 when the minimum price was set at 32 sen per stick or RM6.40 per pack (20 sticks). Liow said the price of cigarettes was an important factor in determining how much the people took to smoking. “A high price will deter the accessibility of cigarettes to younger people,” he said. The Government increased the excise duty on tobacco by one sen per stick in last year’s Budget.

It was reported last year that British American Tobacco Malaysia, which has a 70% share of the domestic legal cigarette market, increased the price of its 20-stick packs by 30 sen and its 14-stick packs by 20 sen – the price of a 14-cigarette pack ranges from RM5.80 (1.82 USD) to RM6.90 (2.17 USD) while a 20-stick cigarette pack costs RM7.80 (2.45 USD) to RM9.30 (2.92 USD).

He lamented that the number of cancer and heart disease patients in the country had also increased every year due to smoking.

“The ministry is also working with the Customs Department to prevent cigarette smuggling, which has been increasing lately due to higher cigarette prices,” Liow said.

On the sale of e-cigarettes, Liow said the ministry would study the impact of the use of such cigarettes first. It was reported that WHO has not endorsed the e-cigarettes due to “lack of data”.

Meanwhile, Consumer Association of Selangor and Federal Territories president Mohd Yusoff Abdul Rahman said the ban of 14-stick cigarette packs was also hoped to prevent students from falling into smoking habits. He said most of the cigarette-smoking students were using money given by their parents to get their fix. "By only allowing the sale of 20-stick cigarettes packs, which are more expensive, inadvertently, these students will buy less cigarettes," he said.

Muslim Consumer Association of Malaysia's (PPIM) executive secretary Datuk Nadzim Johan, on the other hand, said while welcoming the government's effort to reduce the number of cigarette smokers in the country, the association hoped that the ruling be implemented as soon as possible. "The sooner it is implemented, the better...so that the smoking habit will not be spread like a contagious disease," he said. Nadzim also called on the government to tighten regulations and enforcement on cigarette-related advertising in a bid to reduce the sale of cigarettes among teenagers.

Liow told Datuk Mohd Sirat Abu (BN – Bukit Katil) that a World Health Organisation study revealed that the increase in the price of cigarettes by 10% had managed to decrease demand for cigarettes by 8% in developing countries and 4% in developed countries.

References: 14-stick packs to be snuffed out the Star online, 4/6/2009; NGOs Laud Ban On Sale Of 14-stick Cigarette Packs, Bernama.com, 4/7/2009.

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Malaysia - new strategy to penalize retailers who sell contraband cigarettes..;
Malaysia - youth and student smokers may not receive aid from government..;
Malaysia - two tobacco control regulations starting January 1, 2010..
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Malaysia - slowdown in cigarette consumption..;
Malaysia - January 1, 2009 pictorial cigarette warnings..;
Malaysia to hike cigarette prices..;
Malaysia - 25% of all cigarettes sales are illegal...Peninsular Malaysia - one of three cigarette packs is either contraband or fake..;
Komtar, Penang, Malaysia smoking ban strictly enforced..;
Malaysia student forced to smoke 40 cigarettes in two hours..
Malaysia - PSD and Cuepacs are at odds over the no-smoking rule at government de­­partments and agencies..;
Malaysia: Are tobacco control measures working? - WHO thinks so...;
Malaysia - slowdown in cigarette consumption..;
Malaysia - January 1, 2009 pictorial cigarette warnings..;
Malaysia to hike cigarette prices..;
Malaysia - 25% of all cigarettes sales are illegal...

- Malaysia is a member of Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA)..