Clause 1 - Prohibition of tobacco advertising
Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Bill
2:45 pm
Ms Yvette Cooper (Parliamentary Secretary (Public Health), Department of Health; Pontefract and Castleford, Labour)
Government amendment No. 19 extends the defences for others—beyond ISPs—who distribute by electronic means. I hope that hon. Members who are concerned about electronic distributors will welcome that provision, as it also allows such people the defence that they were unaware. I hope that I have given assurances that we are keen to work with ISPs to develop a framework that removes the burden of enforcement from them and allows enforcement to be carried out sensibly. I mentioned the Internet Watch Foundation earlier, which may not be the appropriate body; there may be another mechanism. Experience has shown that it is not necessary to set up a mechanism in the Bill. I shall reflect on the matter further, but in all our discussions so far we have concluded that it should be possible to deal with the problem without making provision in the Bill. Such a provision might be more burdensome than flexible arrangements that we can discuss directly with ISPs.
The hon. Member for South Dorset made two criticisms. First, he criticised the Bill because it did not have extra-territorial jurisdiction, but that is a fact of all the legislation that we pass. The Government are keen to work with our European partners and other countries across the world on tobacco control, but we must be realistic about what we can achieve. We can certainly make immense progress, through this Bill, on restricting tobacco advertising, in particular, advertising that reaches children.
Secondly, the hon. Member for South Dorset said that tobacco companies would do everything that they could to get round it. Tell me about it! Tobacco companies have consistently got around previous voluntary agreements, and no one should be surprised if they try to find ways round the provisions in the Bill. By making the Bill as comprehensive as possible, and providing specific defences, we aim to restrict this lucrative and effective advertising that promotes a deadly product.
Question put, That the amendment be made:—
The Committee divided: Ayes 4, Noes 9.