In May 2003 the 192 member states of the World Health Organization adopted the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC); it entered into force on 27 February 2005.

Among other things, the FCTC calls on governments to:

provide people with more information about the dangers of smoking

enact and enforce measures that help keep young people from smoking

counter the spread of fake and smuggled cigarettes

The FCTC marks a big step forward because it sets global standards for tobacco control measures. We hope it will encourage more governments to move towards comprehensive tobacco regulation – that is, a regulatory framework where fiscal policy, consumer information, licensing and other measures complement each other.

Above all, the FCTC is an opportunity to take a fresh look at tobacco regulation, to ask what measures are most likely to reduce the harm done by smoking and to combine those measures into effective regulatory regimes.

We believe that licensing (see FCTC, article 15, section 7) and product regulation (article 9) are cornerstones of effective tobacco control, and we encourage governments to:

Introduce a licensing system for everyone in the tobacco business, including manufacturers, importers, exporters and retailers

Withdraw its licence from any business that breaks the law, for instance by selling tobacco to children

Treat all conventional tobacco products the same in terms of product standards and taxation

For more information about the FCTC, comprehensive regulation and global tobacco control please click the links on the right.

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