Tobacco.org

Smokers forced to stub it out in public areas 

Parliament has now formally adopted a law Friday extending a smoking ban to all indoor areas.

The new legislation was fiercely contested by both sides of the dispute. More than 40 percent of Bulgaria's 7.6 million population are believed to smoke.The ban, which takes effect June 1, 2010, is part of an anti-smoking government strategy that includes price hikes on cigarettes and media campaigns.

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Once again we adopt law that will not be observed: MP on smoking ban 

I expect that the smoking ban in public places will have the same fate like home-made rakia (fruit brandy popular in Bulgaria, Focus News Agency’s note). An excise duty was imposed on home-made rakia, but has any one paid it?, MP Borislav Kitov told journalists in the parliament’s lobby, cited by Focus News Agency.

“The smoking ban in closed public places is a decision that had to be made sooner or later, but I think we hurried once again,” he said.

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Smoking banned in public places in Bulgaria as of 1 June 2010 

Bulgarian parliament has banned smoking in public places as of June 1st 2010 after putting to the vote the second reading of the amendments to Health Act, Focus News Agency reported.

The proposal was put to the vote twice. First, it was adopted with 64 votes in favor, 30 against and 19 abstentions. After that the chairman of the parliamentary health committee associate professor Borislav Kitov asked for re-voting, saying it was meaningless to hurry. During the second voting the proposal was adopted with 71 votes in favor, 32 against and 12 abstentions.

At the end MP from Coalition for Bulgaria Stoyan Vitanov said the voting labeled 2,5 million Bulgarians as criminals because they would violate the law.

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20-30% drop in turnovers and bankruptcies if smoking ban in public places imposed as of June: Blagoy Ragin 

The chairman of the Bulgarian Hotel and Restaurant Association Blagoy Ragin expects a drop of 20-30% in turnovers and bankruptcies if the parliament adopts the total smoking ban in public places as of the next month.

Speaking to Focus News Agency, Ragin said the association suggested a more liberal option.

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Parliament to put to vote smoking ban in public places and establishment of medical inspectorate 

On Friday the MPs are expected to put to the vote the second reading of the amendments to the Health Act. The most controversial provision is the one that introduces a total smoking ban in public places as of June 2010. . . .

Another controversial provision is the one establishing a Medical Inspectorate Executive Agency. The opponents of the idea note amendment sets up ‘medical police’ that might result in someone taking the law into their own hands.

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AFP: Bulgaria to ban smoking in indoor public areas 

Smoking will be banned in all indoor public areas in Bulgaria as of June 1, 2010, parliament announced Friday, after voting changes to the country's health law.

The ban, which has divided parliament into smokers and non-smokers, also caused an uproar among restaurant and cafe owners, who said it would ruin their business.

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• Bulgaria votes for smoking ban in public places  

Bulgarian lawmakers voted on Friday to ban smoking in all public spaces from June 2010, ignoring protests from tobacco producers and the tourist industry in Europe's number two smoker.

The Black Sea country has already banned smoking in hospitals, taxis and offices and requires restaurant and bar owners to designate non-smoking areas, but the measures have been widely ignored.

Bulgaria ranks second after Greece in the European Union in terms of number of regular smokers as a percentage of the population, according to a recent Eurobarometer survey.

More than half of its men and more than a third of women in the European Union newcomer of 7.6 million people smoke.

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Bulgaria Bulgaria Tobacco Company Records 541% Export Increase 

The Bulgarian tobacco company "Sofia-BT" AD marked a 541% increase in exports for the first quarter of 2009 year-on-year.

The company exported 610 tons of cigarettes, worth BGN 9,5 M, compared to 94 tons (BGN 1 M) for the same period in 2008.

Main export destinations of "Sofia-BT" are the Near and Far East, Balkans, and some EU countries.

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• Russia disputes ownership of Bulgarian tobacco company 

The Southeast European Times is reporting that Russia intends to take back a number of companies abroad that were once the property of the former Soviet Union, including Bulgarian cigarette maker Bulgartabac, Vladimir Kozhin, head of Russia's Presidential Property Management Department, said on Thursday April 9.

Bulgartabac is a Bulgarian tobacco holding company and one of the leading tobacco products producers in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as a major European cigarette producer. Established in 1947 and based in Sofia, it includes 22 joint-stock subsidiary companies in the tobacco-growing regions of the country. . . .

"We are investigating ... and if we find out that the company was once ours, but in a not very legal way has come into foreign hands, we will launch a procedure for its return," Kozhin said, quoted by the Southeast European Times.

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• Half of Pregnant Women in Bulgaria Active Smokers 

The European Commission's "Help - a life without smoking" campaign started in 2007 in Bulgaria. Its priorities are prevention of smoking, quitting smoking, and the risks of passive smoking. Photo by Sofia Photo Agency * buy photo *

Bulgarians are the third most active smokers among European members, and half of the pregnant women smoke.

The ranking was announced Monday after a survey done by the organizers of the "Help - a life without smoking" campaign.

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Two Million Bulgarians Smoke 

Nearly two million of Bulgaria’s 7.5 million population are active smokers, data by the European Union's "Help for a life without tobacco" program reveals Monday.

This ranks the country third in the all EU chart, topped only by Cyprus and Greece. The statistical medium amount Bulgarians smoke per day is at least a pack of cigarettes.

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Bulgaria Customs Get Philip Morris Help to Combat Cigarette Smuggling 

Philip Morris International is giving training to 100 customs officials on how to stop cigarette smuggling. Photo by Philip Morris International

Philip Morris International is giving technical training to 100 customs officers from across Bulgaria, who are given the job of stopping the illegal smuggling of cigarettes into and out of the country.

The training is taking place on 27-28 January in Sofia.

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Bulgarian MPs cut term of old cigarette excise labels  

Bulgarian MPs caught tobacco companies by surprise on December 2 2008 by voting in favour of cutting the term of old cigarette excise labels to three months.

Up till now, the labels were valid until tobacco makers ran out of forecast quantities but no later than June 31.

International company JTI protested against the decision saying last-minute voting barred strategic planning. Tobacco association members JTI, British American Tobacco, Philip Morris, Karelia and Emperial will pen a protest letter against the new law.

But Bulgartabac, the market monopoly, is hardly likely to join in the protest with insiders saying it was the one to push the amendment.

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Cigarette Makers to Square off with Price Wars in 2009  

Bulgaria’s cigarette producers will battle high excises and the financial crisis with a price war next year, said Kornelia Ninova and Ivan Bilarev, the newly-elected executive directors of Bulgarian tobacco holding group Bulgartabac.

The new excise dutities from January 1, 2009 yet to be voted at second reading will have their toll on cigarette prices in late March, experts say.

The parliamentary budget committee voted duties of 40.5% of the market price plus BGN 41 for 1 000 pieces.

Bulgartabac and cigarette factory Slantse Stara Zagora said the new tax was unjust.

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Bulgaria Enters 2009 with Cigarette Prices Hike 

Cigarette packs produced by Bulgaria's Bulgartabac Holding are to go pricier from January 1 due to higher excise duty, the company's Managing Director, Korneliya Ninova, announced Friday. Photo by Yuliana Nikolova (Sofia Photo Agency) * buy photo *

Cigarette packs produced by Bulgaria's Bulgartabac Holding are to go pricier from January 1 due to higher excise duty, the company's Managing Director, Korneliya Ninova, announced Friday.

Prices will jump up by 26%. Thus the most popular Victory packs will cost BGN 3.45 instead of the current BGN 2.75.

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