The National Coalition Against Contraband Tobacco (NCACT) welcomes and applauds the debate about contraband tobacco in the Ontario legislature sparked by Bill 199, An Act to Amend the Tobacco Tax Act, brought forward by MPP Toby Barrett. The Coalition urged all parties to use this occasion to make a serious effort to combat the spread of illegal cigarettes. “Every politician at Queens Park should be shocked and alarmed at the crisis of con ... Jump to full article >>

Ontario teens are increasingly buying illegal cigarettes from street dealers so it may be time to ban tobacco possession by young people under the age of 19, a spokesman for the National Coalition Against Contraband Tobacco (NCACT) says. Gary Grant, a retired Toronto Police staff superintendent, said studies of butts found around high schools show that young smokers are going to black market vendors to purchase cigarettes for as little as pennie ... Jump to full article >>

Teenagers in the nation’s capital continue to smoke a significant number of contraband cigarettes, a new study suggests. The study, commissioned by the National Coalition Against Contraband Tobacco, found that 23 per cent of cigarette butts collected from around 11 high schools in Ottawa were illegal cigarettes. “Kids, who shouldn’t be smoking at all, are having no trouble getting their hands on illegal cigarettes that cost pen ... Jump to full article >>

British American Tobacco (Malaysia) Bhd (BAT) (4162) wants the government to impose stricter penalties and slap moderate excise duties to curb illegal cigarette trade. According to the Royal Malaysian Customs, illicit cigarette trade reached a record 36.7 per cent of the country’s total cigarette industry. “We plead to the government for more concrete measures to address the explosive growth of illicit cigarettes,” BAT managing ... Jump to full article >>

About 13 per cent of Canadian high-school students who are daily smokers regularly smoke illegal cigarettes A significant portion of young smokers regularly choose contraband cigarettes, a serious public-health problem that undermines efforts to curb young smoking rates, according to a study published today in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Young people who smoke contraband cigarettes also smoke significantly more than their peers who ... Jump to full article >>

Prices for contraband cigarettes have doubled and supplies have dwindled in eastern Ontario and western Quebec since a border post at Cornwall, Ont., was moved due to a dispute with local Akwesasne Mohawks. “The local suppliers or dealers in Cornwall or other cities like Ottawa — they’re at the bottom of the list for the product,” said RCMP Sgt. Michael Harvey. “The priority is to get it to other aboriginal communities ... Jump to full article >>

CIGARETTE smuggling is costing the state hundreds of millions of euro in lost levies. The illegal trade is reaching epidemic proportions and one estimate, for the losses to the exchequer per year by the end of 2010 of excise duties and VAT, has been put at €750 million. The claim was made yesterday by the Irish Tobacco Manufacturers Advisory Committee (ITMAC). It represents the big three cigarette companies – Gallaher, Players and Carrolls. ... Jump to full article >>