Finland - cigarettes go under the counter in 2012..

December 24, 2010 - A ban on displaying cigarettes in shop windows and shelves comes into effect in Finland in 2012. Consumers interested in purchasing cigarettes will be handed simple catalogues illustrating cigarette packages and price information.

Tobacco products will be listed in catalogues by name, package size and retail price. Product images may also be included. The rudimentary nature of the catalogue is intended to prohibit it from being used as a marketing tool.

Finland's anti-smoking laws are considered among the toughest in the world. Since coming into force in October, the law seeks to make Finland smoking-free not by an outright ban on smoking, but by methods such as limiting the visibility and availability of tobacco products. (Finland - president approves new tobacco act, not as strong as people hoped..)

More hotel rooms in Finland will also be smoke-free by 2012, as no more than one in ten hotel rooms may be designated for smoking guests.

Cigarette vending machines will meanwhile be a thing of the past staring in 2015.

Since October, supplying tobacco to minors has been a punishable offence leading to a fine or even jail time. Smoking bans were also extended to school yards, festivals and football stadiums. (Finland - enforcement of tobacco act begins - 1st - forbid the selling of cigarettes to children..)

Finland - ban on smoking on terraces of private apartments overturned...

Finland - govt can not prevent people from smoking in cars when kids are present...

Finland - proposal for plain cigarette packaging surfaces again...

Finland - parliament will soon vote on anti-smoking bill...

Reference: Cigarettes Go under the Counter in 2012, YLE.fi, 12/24/2010.

Finland - some related news briefs:
Finland - enforcement of tobacco act begins - 1st - forbid the selling of cigarettes to children..;
Finland - ban on smoking on terraces of private apartments overturned..;
Finland - president approves new tobacco act, not as strong as people hoped..;
Finland - Philip Morris destroys 20 million cigarettes - not self-extinguishing..;
Finland - govt can not prevent people from smoking in cars when kids are present..;
Finland - proposal for plain cigarette packaging surfaces again..;
Finland - parliament will soon vote on anti-smoking bill..;
Finland - anti-smoking bill will end smoking altogether..;
Finland - to end the consumption of tobacco products by 2040..;
Finland - extends anti-tobacco law, restricting smoking in cars and ban on cigarette displays..;
Finland - health officials devising more restrictions to fight tobacco use..;
Finland - government proposing ban on smoking when kids present and other tobacco control measures..;
Finland may ban smoking in cars carrying children..;
Finland - Court of Appeals Hears Cigarette Liability Case, Decision Spring 2010..;
Finland banning shops from displaying cigarettes..;
Finland - proposal to ban tobacco display, total ban on SNUS..;
European Health Commissioner reprimands Astrid Thors for snus liberation campaign..;
Aland Islands Dispute Over Sale of SNUS On Board Ships Threatens Finland's Ratification of the EU's Treaty of Lisbon (The Reform Treaty)..;
Finnish Ferry Goes Swedish Over Snus Ban..;
EU Takes Finland to Court Again For NOT Banning the Use of Oral Tobacco..