RE your article of 22 February (MP in call to act on cigarette packaging), children who take up smoking are influenced mainly by peer pressure or by family members who smoke.
As a responsible local retailer I support sensible and effective measures to deter underage smoking. These include: proof of age and identity schemes like CitizenCard; giving more resources to our hard-pressed enforcement agencies; and clamping down on those who deal in counterfeit and smuggled tobacco.
Plain packaging would be a gift to criminals and would be totally counter-productive. For instance, plain packs would be much easier to copy than the existing, complex designs. By lowering the bar, the authorities would be inviting more criminals to enter the market.
Criminals would think nothing of offering cheap, illegal tobacco to children – the very people we all want to protect.
The Government should listen and drop these proposals due to their potential to harm our local youngsters, businesses and communities.
G E Carini-House Beaufort Rise Ebbw Vale
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