| Author (Corporate) | European Commission |
|---|---|
| Series Title | COM |
| Series Details | (2015) 193 final (4.5.15) |
| Publication Date | 04/05/2015 |
| Content Type | Policy-making |
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The World Health Assembly adopted in 2003 the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which aims at reducing tobacco-related deaths and diseases around the world in a comprehensive manner. The EU concluded the FCTC by Council Decision 2004/513/EC of 2 June 2004. The FCTC recognises in its Article 15 that the elimination of illicit trade in tobacco products, including smuggling, illicit manufacturing and counterfeiting, is an essential component of tobacco control, and obliges Parties to adopt and implement effective measures to eliminate illicit trade. Article 33 of the FCTC provides for the possibility for the Conference of the Parties to adopt protocols to the Convention. On the basis of these Articles, the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the FCTC, at its second session in June-July 2007 decided to establish an Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) to draft and negotiate a Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (hereinafter referred to as ‘the FCTC Protocol’). The INB concluded its work successfully, and the Conference of the Parties to the FCTC at its fifth meeting on 12 November 2012 in Seoul, Republic of Korea, adopted the Protocol. Illicit trade in tobacco products and in particular cigarette smuggling into the EU and within the EU is a criminal activity causing huge losses in revenue for the EU and the Member States in terms of unpaid taxes and customs duties. Estimates indicate more than €10 billion losses of revenue annually to the EU and Member States. Most of the EU Member States are affected by the illicit tobacco trade, either as points of entry or transit or destination countries. Since the illicit products mostly originate from countries outside the EU, international cooperation, in particular also based on clear legislative procedures, is key to addressing the problem of illicit trade. The FCTC Protocol is an international agreement building upon and complementing Article 15 of the FCTC, and currently constitutes the only multilateral regulatory initiative in the area. The Commission has participated in the negotiations of the FCTC Protocol on behalf of the European Union. The EU signed the FCTC Protocol on 20 December 2013. The present proposal concerns the second step by which the EU will establish at international level its consent to be fully bound by the FCTC Protocol. |
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| Source Link | http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2015:193:FIN |
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| Subject Categories | Health, Justice and Home Affairs, Politics and International Relations |
| Countries / Regions | Europe |
