Sale of loose cigarettes to be BANNED under new law

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Remember when you could just score loose cigarettes at the little shop on the corner? Well, updates to the Tobacco Bill aim to ban the sale of loose cigarettes by informal traders and spaza shops. And anyone caught doing so faces hefty fines and even imprisonment.

However, the Portfolio Committee on Health has been hearing arguments against the law over the last week. Specifically, the Tobacco Products Control Bill in South Africa regulates all aspects of tobacco control, public smoking, advertising and packaging.

SALE OF LOOSE CIGARETTES TO BE BANNED

Millions of illegal cigarettes smuggled into South Africa have been destroyed. Image: Pixabay

According to the Cancer Association of South African (CANSA), tobacco-related diseases kill nearly 50 000 South Africans annually. More than 7-million South Africans smoke and there are over 1-billion smokers worldwide.

Nevertheless, spaza shop owners and informal traders believe the banning of loose cigarettes could bankrupt their businesses, reports The Citizen. A spokesperson from the Enterprises and Hawkers Association told parliament that the ban on single cigarettes would cripple operations. He said customers only buy loose cigarettes because they cannot afford a full box. And they’re a reliable means to bring customers to the shop/trader.

PUBLIC SAFETY

loose cigaretes — The vast majority of e-cigarettes are sold online and therefore suffer from lax safety control, which the new laws hope to amend. Image: File

Furthermore, the new Tobacco Bill aims improve public health by introducing stricter regulations. It will hold traders liable if customers are found smoking publicly near where they’ve purchased products. These laws include not just loose cigarettes but banning tobacco product displays at point of sale and regulating electronic nicotine devices (e-cigarettes).

Currently, smoking in indoor public places is banned. Unless the smoking area makes up 25% of the premises. However, the new Tobacco Bill will completely ban smoking in all indoor public places and certain outdoor areas, too. Sale of tobacco products online will also be banned. This is in a bid to control underage smoking. As such, anyone who buys cigarettes and/or e-cigarettes will need to do so in person and produce a physical identification document at the point of sale.