Clause 8 - Prohibition of Free Distributions
Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Bill
4:45 pm
Ms Yvette Cooper (Parliamentary Secretary (Public Health), Department of Health; Pontefract and Castleford, Labour)
The key issue is whether a tobacco product is being promoted.
I shall clarify the question of cigars circulating at a dinner party. If a private business man hands out cigars that are paid for as part of corporate entertainment, with a purpose of persuading customers to buy, for example, computer software, but with neither the purpose nor the effect of promoting a tobacco product, that clearly constitutes a defence. The inability to foresee that an action would promote a tobacco product would also constitute a defence. However, the Bill covers a tobacco company that hands out free cigars and cigarettes in order to promote a tobacco product or a company that pays another company to distribute free tobacco products in order to promote a tobacco product, whether they are being promoted to Members of Parliament or to customers at an event.
The purpose of the clause is to tackle free distributions of cigarettes—perhaps to students—toys, teapots and other goodies used to promote tobacco products. That is the crunch question: the Bill seeks to prevent the use of free distributions as alternative methods of marketing and promoting cigarettes and smoking. That is the health aim that we are trying to achieve.
Question put and agreed to.
Clause 8 ordered to stand part of the Bill.