Bulgaria will continue in a course of gradual raise in the excise of raw cut tobacco with state budget 2011, which previews a rate of BGN 130 per kg. This was revealed by ruling GERB party MP Dimitar Glavchev, who said that the Parliamentary Budget Committee has fully consulted all stakeholders in tobacco production when determining the rate at which the excise will be increasing. The decision reached was to raise the excise with 20% and then to ... Jump to full article >>

MANY Australians question Kevin Rudd’s sincerity on increasing tobacco excise, with a new poll suggesting 53 per cent believe the move is a political tactic to divert their attention. A Galaxy poll, conducted for right-wing think tank the Institute of Public Affairs and released yesterday, found a strong suspicion that the increase in tobacco excise announced by the Prime Minister last week was aimed at drawing attention away from the gove ... Jump to full article >>

The European Union Council of Ministers, the bloc’s principal decision-making body, has adopted a directive updating EU rules on the structure and rates of excise duties on cigarettes and other tobacco products. “The directive is intended to ensure a higher level of public health protection by raising minimum excise duties on cigarettes, while bringing the minimum rates for fine-cut tobacco gradually into line with those for cigarettes, ... Jump to full article >>

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline)-Democrats in control of California’s Legislature are pushing to raise the state cigarette tax by $1.50 to help raise revenue amid a historically severe cash crunch. But critics say the plan to raise the state’s tobacco excise tax could collapse if Democrats are unable to muster at least some Republican support since the state constitution requires a two-thirds vote for tax increases. Grant Gillham ... Jump to full article >>