Price 'best way' to curb smoking

The price in Malta of a well-known brand of cigarettes is less than half that in the United Kingdom, the organisers of the Help For A Life Without Tobacco campaign said.

A packet of these cigarettes is cheaper in Latvia, at €1.08, and most expensive in the UK, where it costs €7.36. In Malta a packet of this particular brand costs €3.49, up from €3.45 last year.

The organisers of the EU-wide anti-smoking campaign pointed out that tax policy remains the most effective and sustainable way to reduce cigarette consumption. Taxes on cigarettes vary from 60 per cent in Latvia to 80 per cent in France.

The campaign promoters said that according to the World Bank, price increases are the most effective and cost-effective deterrent. It pointed out that a 10 per cent price increase decreases consumption by around four per cent in high-income countries. The number of smokers in France decreased by 12 per cent between 1999 and 2003.

However, the effects of tax increases on the prevalence of smoking are being weakened by a number of factors, including the launch of low-priced cigarette brands and incentive pricing by tobacco companies as well as an increase in counterfeit cigarettes and the rise of cross-border shopping.

The €72 million four-year campaign is aiming to encourage as many people as possible to kick their habit.