September is quickly approaching, which means New York City will soon be buzzing with excitement surrounding the start of the high-level meetings of the UN General Assembly’s 68th session, where the post-2015 development agenda will be a key focus of discussion. All of these events will serve as the next
Washington, DC 26 August – Tobacco control advocates from over 20 different countries lauded Malaysia for its announcement to exclude tobacco from the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP). The TPP is a free trade agreement involving twelve countries of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) bloc: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan,
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Brunei – The Malaysian government is poised to table a proposal here that would completely carve out tobacco control measures from having to comply with any obligations in a Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, according to informed sources. The proposal, which would effectively shield TPP governments from any
LAST year I endorsed President Obama for re-election largely because of his commitment to putting science and public health before politics. But now the Obama administration appears to be on the verge of bowing to pressure from a powerful special-interest group, the tobacco industry, in a move that would be
The Obama administration is facing a furore over its latest tobacco proposal in trade talks with 11 Pacific Rim countries, with critics charging it will boost smoking in the region and business groups fighting back. Michael Froman, US trade representative, brought a new offer on tobacco to the 19th round
On the threat from trade agreements to tobacco regulations, few have been able to come as close to the heart of the matter as Mayor Bloomberg. His opinion piece in today’s New York Times in reaction to President Obama’s reversal on tobacco in the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement brilliantly summarizes why
The war between the tobacco industry and anti-smoking forces is heating up as cigarette makers intensify efforts to use treaties to block labeling constraints. Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) has pressed the U.S. for language that would make it tougher for countries in a proposed Pacific Rim trade pact to
Pretty soon, if U.S. representatives negotiating a secretive trade deal get their way, tariffs on tobacco in poor Asian countries will sink to zero — and those countries will have a hard time protecting their citizens against a tidal wave of cheaper cigarettes. Over several decades, the U.S. has relentlessly
WASHINGTON, DC 19 August – The Obama Administration has backed down from a proposal revealed 15 months ago to protect health from Big Tobacco under the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the pending free trade agreement with 11 other countries. New language concerning tobacco, the exact text of which has not been
At issue is whether participating countries can have strict anti-smoking laws Facing vehement protest from tobacco state lawmakers and business groups, the Obama administration appears to have retreated from efforts to keep cigarette makers from using trade treaties to attack countries that adopt strong anti-smoking rules. At issue is whether
In 2010, 14.3 percent of adults in Singapore were smokers. The goal is to reduce this to under 10 percent by 2020. However, a soon-to-be multilateral free trade agreement (FTA) threatens our local anti-smoking efforts. This is the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Moving this month in Brunei into its potentially final
KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia will not be bound by any fixed timeline with regards to the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA). At a special meeting convened today, the Cabinet made this stand as a number of issues, including that of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) or government-linked companies, labour and Intellectual
The Malaysian government is expected to carve out tobacco from the controversial Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement in a soon to be convened special Cabinet meeting, according to an official from the Malaysian Council for Tobacco Control (MCTC). MCTC president Dr Molly Cheah said the Ministry of International Trade and
Facing vehement protest from tobacco state lawmakers and business groups, the Obama administration appears to have retreated from efforts to keep cigarette makers from using trade treaties to attack countries that adopt strong anti-smoking rules. At issue is whether a pending free trade deal should include language protecting the authority
A few weeks ago, you may have seen some press about an “Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking” from the Food and Drug Administration regarding menthol cigarettes. In government-speak, this means that the FDA intends to regulate menthol additives in cigarettes and is giving the public a chance to chime in.
U.S. will comply with WTO decision by moving to ban menthol additives GENEVA, SWITZERLAND 24 July – Yesterday the U.S. laid out its plan to come into compliance with a WTO dispute settlement panel finding that the U.S. ban on clove cigarettes violated the trading rights of Indonesia. The
Statement of the United States on Menthol for the WTO Dispute Settlement Body on July 23, 2013 The United States provided a status report in this dispute on July 11, 2013, in accordance with Article 21.6 of the DSU. As the United States has reported to the DSB, U.S. authorities
Lorillard Inc. (LO), Altria Group Inc. (MO) and other tobacco companies may face limits on selling menthol cigarettes in the U.S. after regulators determined the minty flavoring may encourage people to start smoking. The Food and Drug Administration, in a preliminary evaluation today, stopped short of proposing a ban. The
U.S. Unlikely To Table Drug IPR, Tobacco Proposal At Current TPP Round Posted: July 18, 2013 KOTA KINABALU — A spokeswoman for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative strongly signaled that U.S. negotiators will not offer any new formal proposals here on two controversial issues in the Trans-Pacific
Most effective measure is the most under-utilized WASHINGTON, DC. 10 July – A report released today by the World Health Organization concludes that tax and price measures are the “least-achieved” of a global menu of regulations to combat the growing tobacco epidemic, in spite of overwhelming evidence that higher tobacco
By Al Munzer Chair, Board of Trustees, Action for Smoking and Health (ASH) The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) was developed in response to globalisation of the tobacco epidemic, and has been widely embraced by the world community. The FCTC now includes 176 parties, representing 88.6 percent of
(Reuters) – Anti-smoking measures including higher taxes on tobacco products, bans on adverts and controls on lighting up in public places could prevent tens of millions of premature deaths across the world, researchers said on Monday. Similar steps taken by Turkey, Romania and 39 other countries between 2007 and 2010
Leading U.S. public health groups are urging newly confirmed United States Trade Representative (USTR) Michael Froman to move forward with a proposal that would protect nations’ authority to enact measures to reduce tobacco use under the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement the U.S. is negotiating with 11 other countries.
The SJC today unanimously rejected Lorillard Tobacco Co.’s attempt to evade liability in a case brought by Willie Evans, whose mother Marie died in 2002 at the age of 54. Testimony at trial reported that while Marie was a child growing up in the Orchard Park housing project in the
Within the framework of World No Tobacco Day, PAHO/WHO warns that these two risk factors cause the most deaths in the region. Washington, D.C., 5 June 2013 (PAHO/WHO) – Tobacco consumption increases the risk of death of people who have high blood pressure. Within the framework of World No Tobacco
