Plain tobacco packaging passes – to a legal fire fight

Big Tobacco’s bid to block the legislation went up in smoke, igniting a billion-dollar compensation lawsuit threat from British American Tobacco Australia.

To repeal the law it believes to be unconstitutional, BATA will now take the Federal Government to the High Court. Generic packaging strips away trademark rights without compensation. The change in packaging is liable to have an impact on the development of gravure production in Australia. The packaging companies will be required to produce different packets for local and overaseas consumption, limiting the size of the print runs.

BATA spokesperson, Scott McIntyre says the legal challenges could force Australia to pay billions of dollars to Big Tobacco for the removal of trademarks, brands and pack space.

“Minister Roxon has been unable to give a guarantee that her government would win a legal challenge by the tobacco industry and neither could her key legal advisers during the plain packaging Senate Inquiry,” he says.

Tobacco companies made it clear from the word go that they would fight the Government each step of the way. Millions of dollars have been spent through advertising campaigns, and many more to flow with legal proceedings in play.

According to Heath Minister Nicola Roxon, Big Tobacco does not intimidate the Government. All tobacco products sold in Australia will need to be in plain packaging from 1 December 2012.

“We know that packaging remains one of the last powerful marketing tools for tobacco companies to recruit new smokers to their deadly products. In the future, cigarette packets will serve only as a stark reminder of the devastating health effects of smoking.

“The World Health Organization has recognised Australia’s lead in tobacco control, singling out our plain packaging legislation as an example for the world to follow,” she says.

It will be a long hard road to push generic packaging on the world stage. Especialy since a US federal judge blocked a push for graphic health warnings in cigarette packaging next year, citing Big Tobacco would succeed in a lawsuit claiming violations of free speech.