Clause 4 - Rates of tobacco products duty
Finance Bill
9:45 am
Mr Oliver Letwin (West Dorset, Conservative)
I completely agree with the hon. Gentleman that the fault for breaking the law lies not with the Government but with the lawbreaker, and I completely agree with his implicit assertion that the lawbreaker should be punished if caught. However, the fact remains that large numbers of our fellow citizens who otherwise obey the law engage in the criminal activity of buying roll-your-own—one can see that happening in many pubs around the country—from someone who got it off the back of a lorry. I attribute the blame for the action to the people who engage in it—I agree with the hon. Gentleman about that—but mortal flesh is weak. It is regrettable that they break that law, because they begin to put themselves on the wrong side of the law in general. To be a law-abiding person—I exempt parking tickets and speeding fines— [Hon. Members: ``Oh.''] Well, I certainly exempt parking tickets. I do not believe that by getting a parking ticket an individual puts himself into a different relationship with the state. Perhaps I am wrong about that.