• Giving films that “portray positive images of smoking” and adults-only classification
• Forcing retailers to get a licence to sell tobacco
• Banning the display of tobacco products at point-of-sale
• Ending the sale of tobacco from vending machines
• Introducing plain packaging on cigarette packets, with only the brand name and health warnings
• Setting minimum price levels for tobacco products.
The BMA claimed that “despite some of the most restrictive tobacco legislation in the world, young people in the UK are still exposed to creative marketing strategies such as elaborate point-of-sale displays, attractive pack designs and evocative brand imagery.”
But James Lowman of the Association of Convenience Stores said some of the BMA proposals went “way beyond” current government proposals.
He added: “Too much of reports like these are based on big assumptions and sketchy examples.
“ACS remains committed to making an effective case against a display ban and in favour of better targeting of resources that have an immediate impact on deterring young people from smoking, specifically tackling the largely unrestricted black market and the adults who facilitate smoking by buying cigarettes for children.”
