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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
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24 results foundAuthor: Hartwig, Christina Title: Report on Tobacco Smoking in Prison Summary: Ths use of tobacco displays a great burden of disease, with 4.9 million tobacco-attributed deaths worldwide each year. To tackle the tobacco epidemic and the associated health problems, the European Cmomission, the Member States and the World Health Organization have been running campaigns against tobacco for many years. This report presents the results of an inquiry on smoking bans in European prisons and reveals that 22 (79%) out of 28 respondents (EU-Member States plus Switzerland and Monaco) have introduced smoking bans in all of their prisons. The report ends with recommendations on tobacco control policies in prisons, on implementation of smoke-free environments, on smoking prevention and quitting support, as well as priority research. Details: Brussels, Belgium: European Commission, Directorate General for Health and Consumers, 2008. 36p. Source: Final Report Work Package 7 Year: 2008 Country: Europe URL: Shelf Number: 113900 Keywords: HealthPrisonsSmokingTobacco |
Author: U.S. Government Accountability Office Title: Illicit Tobacco: Various Schemes Are Used to Evade Taxes and Fees Summary: Tobacco products face varying levels of taxation in different locations, creating opportunities and incentives for illicit trade. Cigarettes are taxed at the federal, state, and in some cases, local levels. According to industry representatives, taxes and other fees make up significant components of the final price of cigarettes, averaging 53 percent of the retail price. While the national average retail price of a pack of cigarettes was $5.95 in 2010, in New York City, a pack can cost up to $13.00 or more due to high combined state and city taxes. In contrast, a pack of cigarettes in Richmond, Virginia, can cost approximately $5.00, due to low state cigarette taxes there. The tax differential between a case of cigarettes (typically containing 12,000 cigarettes) in New York City and Richmond is over $3,000, creating incentives for illicit trade and profits. Excise taxes and other fees on tobacco products can be evaded at numerous points in the supply chain. Law enforcement officials told us another incentive to engage in this activity is the fact illicit tobacco penalties are comparatively less severe than other forms of illicit trade. According to experts we spoke with and literature we reviewed, a wide range of schemes are used by different actors to profit from illicit trade in tobacco products, mainly through the evasion of taxes. Schemes can range from individual consumers purchasing tax-free cigarettes from Internet Web sites, to larger-scale interstate trafficking of tobacco products, to smuggling cigarettes into the country by criminal organizations. For example: (1) A California distributor purchased approximately $1.4 million in other tobacco products (e.g., cigars and chewing tobacco) from an out-ofstate distributor, who disguised the shipments using falsified documents and black plastic wrapping. The California distributor then sold it to customers and failed to pay state excise taxes. (2) A criminal organization attempted to conceal two containers of counterfeit cigarettes and pass them through Customs at the Los Angeles/Long Beach port by declaring them as toys and plastic goods. (3) A manufacturer evaded Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) escrow payments. The manufacturer underreported its cross-border sales to numerous states, including Virginia. By underreporting its sales to Virginia, the manufacturer evaded approximately $580,000 in escrow payments. Law enforcement officials reported that patterns of schemes are dynamic and identified links between illicit trade in tobacco and other crimes. Details: Washington, DC: GAO, 2011. 27p. Source: Internet Resource: GAO-11-313: Accessed March 8, 2011 at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11313.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11313.pdf Shelf Number: 120888 Keywords: Illegal TradeSmugglingTax EvasionTobacco |
Author: Allen, Elizabeth Title: The Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products and How to Tackle It Summary: This publication aims to raise awareness of the growing and evolving illicit trade in tobacco products. It is a compilation of facts and views from a wide range of sources including respected academics, private sector consultants, journalists, international enforcement organizations, government revenue authorities and industry. It defines the different aspects of illicit trade and provides information on ways of measuring its size. It analyzes the nature of the problem, its causes and consequences, and offers authorities best practice guidance on implementing anti-illicit trade strategies. Case studies are used to provide evidence of good practice and global efforts to tackle this serious problem. Details: Brussels: International Tax and Investment Center, 2011. 36p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 11, 2011 at: http://www.iticnet.org/Public/PublicDocLanding.aspx?id=41&type=Brussels Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://www.iticnet.org/Public/PublicDocLanding.aspx?id=41&type=Brussels Shelf Number: 121692 Keywords: Illegal CigarettesIllegal TradeIllicit TradeSmugglingTobacco |
Author: Clacherty & Associates Title: Hard Work, Long Hours and Little Pay: Research with Children Working on Tobacco Farms in Malawi Summary: This research on tobacco farms in Malawi reveals that child labourers, some as young as 5, are suffering severe physical symptoms from absorbing up to the equivalent of 50 cigarettes a day through their skin. As the tobacco industry continues to shift its production to developing countries, more vulnerable children are being exposed to these hazardous working conditions. Details: Lilongwe, Malawi: Plan Malawi, 2009. 81p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 18, 2011 at: http://plan-international.org/files/global/publications/protection/Plan%20Malawi%20child%20labour%20and%20tobacco%202009.pdf Year: 2009 Country: Malawi URL: http://plan-international.org/files/global/publications/protection/Plan%20Malawi%20child%20labour%20and%20tobacco%202009.pdf Shelf Number: 122090 Keywords: Child Labor (Malawi)Child MaltreatmentTobacco |
Author: Financial Action Task Force Title: Illicit Tobacco Trade Summary: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Plenary met in Mexico City, during June 2011. It was at said Plenary where a proposal to conduct typology research work into money laundering and terror financing to be associated with the Illicit Trade in Tobacco (ITT) was accepted. March of 2011 also saw the OECD launch the “Oslo Dialogue” with the aim of promoting a whole of government approach to the tackling of financial crimes and illicit flows. This has been augmented by the G20 calling for strengthened inter-agency cooperation to fight illicit activities as well as the FATF adding tax crimes to the list of predicate offences. The proponents of the typology stated that the illicit tobacco trade was prone to money laundering. Trade was considered to be cash intensive and profitable whilst being accompanied by low levels of risk posed to the criminal groupings (in terms of detection, seizures, penalties, criminal procedure) contributing towards the manifestation of the related illicit activities. Key areas of concern included: a) Loss of revenue to the fiscal authorities. b) The use of the illicitly generated proceeds (i.e., to fund other crimes or the financing of terror). c) The ability to distinguish between illicit activities as undertaken by licit and illicit players in the tobacco sector. d) To identify the extent that governments enforcement agencies prioritise the addressing of illicit trade in tobacco when compared to other crimes. It was furthermore mentioned that the project was to augment work already conducted by the FATF, which included Trade Based Money Laundering (June 2006), Laundering the Proceeds of VAT Carousel Fraud (February 2007), ML Vulnerabilities in Free Trade Zones (February 2010) as well as the then recently published Global ML/TF Threat Assessment (June 2010). The identified key objectives were: a) To determine the extent of the Money Laundering and Terror Financing (ML/TF) vulnerabilities associated with illicit trade in tobacco at a global, regional and domestic level. b) To identify relevant case studies and determine trends and patterns from a global, regional and domestic perspective. c) To identify possible indicators which may assist financial and non financial institutions in developing mechanisms to identify, report and counter smuggling activities and the misuse of trade practices. d) To assist jurisdictions and FATF-Style Regional Bodies (FSRBs) in knowledge building and the identification of harms, drivers and measures associated with the illicit trade in tobacco. e) To enhance the efforts aimed at curbing ML and TF associated with the illicit trade in tobacco. This document provides a synopsis of the nature and extent of the ML/TF risks currently associated with the illicit trade in tobacco. It contains an overview of the problem statement and the data provided, as well as an analysis of the predicate offences, extent of associated money laundering and terror financing activities coupled lastly to the various jurisdictional enforcement responses to the curbing of this specific phenomenon. Details: Paris: FATF, 2012. 80p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed october 4, 2012 at: http://www.fatf-gafi.org/media/fatf/documents/reports/Illicit%20Tobacco%20Trade.pdf Year: 2012 Country: International URL: http://www.fatf-gafi.org/media/fatf/documents/reports/Illicit%20Tobacco%20Trade.pdf Shelf Number: 126552 Keywords: Financial CrimesIllicit TradeMoney LaunderingTerrorist FinancingTobacco |
Author: International Consortium of Investigative Journalists Title: Tobacco Underground: The Global Trade in Smuggled Cigarettes Summary: Tobacco Underground is a project of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Working with reporters in more than a dozen countries, ICIJ is charting the frontlines of the illicit traffic in cigarettes. During 2000 and 2001, a team of reporters from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists broke a series of landmark stories exposing how leading tobacco companies worked with criminal networks to smuggle cigarettes around the world. Relying on interviews with insiders and thousands of internal industry documents, the unique team - based in six countries - pieced together how smuggling played a key role in big tobacco's strategy to boost sales and increase market share. Those revelations, and others that followed, helped prompt lawsuits and government inquiries, and led to promises of a global crackdown on the illegal trade in tobacco. Details: Washington, DC: International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, 2009. 190p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 15, 2014 at: http://cloudfront-9.icij.org/sites/icij/files/tobaccounderground_0.pdf Year: 2009 Country: International URL: http://cloudfront-9.icij.org/sites/icij/files/tobaccounderground_0.pdf Shelf Number: 132375 Keywords: Cigarette SmugglingIllegal TradeOrganized CrimeTax AvoidanceTobacco |
Author: Calderoni, Francesco Title: The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products 5 - Germany Summary: This report is part of the project the Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (henceforth ITTP). The project has been developed by Transcrime after the Round Table on Proofing EU Regulation against the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products hosted by Universite Cattolica of Milan, on 5 May 2011. During the Round Table, participants (researchers and policymakers with experience in the field of the illicit trade in tobacco products) agreed on a research agenda concerning the ITTP (Transcrime 2011b). Items 3 and 6 of the research agenda focused on the need for better analysis of the tobacco market taking account of its dual nature (i.e. legal and illicit) and on how licit and illicit markets vary across different countries and regions. Given these considerations, Transcrime has developed the Factbook on the ITTP, a multi-annual research plan providing detailed analyses of the ITTP and of its relations with the legal market and other socio-economic and political factors in a number of countries around the world. The aim of the Factbook is to provide an innovative instrument able to shed light on the complex mechanisms behind the ITTP in different countries. This report focuses on Germany. Tobacco consumption is undoubtedly a danger for human health, and governments should carefully regulate the tobacco market. Illicit tobacco avoids state regulation and taxation and may jeopardise tobacco control policies. The Factbook will contribute to raising awareness about the global importance of the ITTP and about the strategies available to prevent it. The Factbook has been developed for a wide readership ranging from policymakers, through academics, to interested stakeholders, the intention being to provide a support to develop knowledge-based debates and policies on the ITTP. The information gathered for this report originates from academic literature, grey literature, open sources, questionnaires and interviews with experts and stakeholders. There are few studies on the ITTP in Germany. Furthermore, information of law enforcement action comes mainly from the German Customs, while other law enforcement agencies, although involved in the fight against the ITTP, provide more limited data. In addition to the these issues, the data-gathering phase of the project encountered major difficulties due to the number of sources, institutions and stakeholders involved. The results of the report do not claim to be exhaustive, nor an accurate reflection of criminal practices. They provide an initial assessment of the ITTP in Germany and a starting point for future research. Details: Milan, IT: Transcrime, 2013. 89p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 14, 2014 at: http://www.transcrime.it/en/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-5-germany/ Year: 2013 Country: Germany URL: http://www.transcrime.it/en/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-5-germany/ Shelf Number: 132809 Keywords: Cigarette SmugglingCigarettesIllegal TradeIllicit TobaccoTobacco |
Author: Calderoni, Francesco Title: The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products 6 - Lithuania Summary: The project has been developed by Transcrime after the Round Table on Proofing EU Regulation against the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products hosted by Universita Cattolica of Milan, on 5 May 2011. During the Round Table, participants (researchers and policymakers with experience in the field of the illicit trade in tobacco products) agreed on a research agenda concerning the ITTP (Transcrime 2011). Items 3 and 6 of the research agenda focused on the need for better analysis of the tobacco market taking account of its dual nature (i.e. legal and illicit) and on how licit and illicit markets vary across different countries and regions. Given these considerations, Transcrime has developed the Factbook on the ITTP, a multi-annual research plan providing detailed analyses of the ITTP and of its relations with the legal market and other socio-economic and political factors in a number of countries around the world. The aim of the Factbook is to provide an innovative instrument able to shed light on the complex mechanisms behind the ITTP in different countries. This report focuses on Lithuania. Details: Milan, IT: Transcrime, 2014. 97p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 29, 2014 at: http://www.transcrime.it/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-6-lithuania/ Year: 2014 Country: Lithuania URL: http://www.transcrime.it/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-6-lithuania/ Shelf Number: 132810 Keywords: Cigarette Smuggling Cigarettes Illegal Trade Illicit Tobacco Tobacco |
Author: Calderoni, Francesco Title: The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products 3 - Ireland Summary: This report is part of the project The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (henceforth ITTP). The project has been developed by Transcrime after the Round Table on Proofing EU Regulation against the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products hosted by Universita Cattolica of Milan, on 5 May 2011. During the Round Table, participants (researchers and policymakers with experience in the field of the illicit trade in tobacco products) agreed on a research agenda concerning the ITTP (Transcrime 2011b). Items 3 and 6 of the research agenda focused on the need for better analysis of the tobacco market taking account of its dual nature (i.e. legal and illicit) and on how licit and illicit markets vary across different countries and regions. Given these considerations, Transcrime has developed the Factbook on the ITTP, a multi-annual research plan providing detailed analyses of the ITTP and of its relations with the legal market and other socioeconomic and political factors in a number of countries around the world. The aim of the Factbook is to provide an innovative instrument able to shed light on the complex mechanisms behind the ITTP in different countries. This report focuses on Ireland. Given the close geographical, social, economic and cultural connections, it also focuses, where appropriate, on Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom.1 Tobacco consumption is undoubtedly a danger for human health, and governments should carefully regulate the tobacco market. Illicit tobacco avoids state regulation and taxation and may jeopardize tobacco control policies. The Factbook will contribute to raising awareness about the global importance of the ITTP and about the strategies available to prevent it. The Factbook has been developed for a wide readership ranging from policymakers, through academics, to interested stakeholders, the intention being to provide a support to develop knowledge-based debates and policies on the ITTP. The information gathered for this report originates from academic literature, grey literature, open sources, questionnaires and interviews with experts and stakeholders. While there are some studies on the ITTP in Ireland, the data-gathering phase of the projects encountered major difficulties due to the number of sources, institutions and stakeholders involved. The results of the report do not claim to be exhaustive, nor an accurate reflection of criminal practices. They provide an initial assessment of the ITTP in Ireland and a starting point for future research. Details: Milan, IT: Transcrime, 2013. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 29, 2014 at: http://www.transcrime.it/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-3-ireland/ Year: 2013 Country: Ireland URL: http://www.transcrime.it/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-3-ireland/ Shelf Number: 132811 Keywords: Cigarette Smuggling Cigarettes Illegal Trade Illicit Tobacco Tobacco |
Author: Calderoni, Francesco Title: The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products 1 - United Kingdom Summary: This report provides the first country profile of the Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products project. The country profile focuses on the UK, where the illicit trade in tobacco products (hereinafter ITTP) has become an important concern since the 1990s. Although Government action since 2000 has successfully reduced the market share of illicit tobacco, the UK's illegal market is still above the average of other EU Member States. WHAT CAN BE FOUND IN THIS REPORT? This report is organised into three sections: Section one deals with the five drivers of the ITTP: society and economy, the legal market, regulation, the crime environment and enforcement. The drivers are important areas whose structures may positively or negatively impact on the ITTP. To enable comparison with other country profiles, five key indicators have been selected for each driver. Section two focuses on the four components of the ITTP: demand, products, supply, modus operandi and geographical distribution. Section three identifies the key factors of the ITTP in UK and frames the drivers in the components, analysing how different elements of the drivers influence the components of ITTP. Details: Milan, IT: Transcrime, 2013. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 29, 2013 at: http://www.transcrime.it/en/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-1/ Year: 2013 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.transcrime.it/en/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-1/ Shelf Number: 132814 Keywords: Cigarette Smuggling Cigarettes Illegal Trade Illicit Tobacco Tobacco |
Author: Calderoni, Francesco Title: The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products 2 - Italy Summary: This report is part of the project The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products. It focuses on Italy, where the illicit trade in tobacco seems to have grown in recent years. This fact, combined with the geographical location of the country and the consolidated presence of organised crime, makes Italy an interesting country to explore in terms of ITTP flows in the Mediterranean basin and towards North European countries. WHAT CAN BE FOUND IN THIS REPORT? This report is organised into three chapters: - Chapter one deals with the five drivers of the ITTP: society and economy, the legal market, regulation, the crime environment and enforcement. The drivers are important areas whose structures may positively or negatively impact on the ITTP. To enable comparison with other country profiles, five key indicators have been selected for each driver. The data for the driver indicators come from comparable sources (latest available years). When possible, the report provides the most up-to-date data from national sources. - Chapter two focuses on the four components of the ITTP: demand, supply, products, modus operandi and geographical distribution. - Chapter three identifies the key factors of the ITTP in Italy and frames the drivers in the components, analysing how different elements of the drivers influence the components of the ITTP. Details: Milan, IT: Transcrime, 2013. 110p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 29, 2014 at: http://www.transcrime.it/en/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-2-italia/ Year: 2013 Country: Italy URL: http://www.transcrime.it/en/pubblicazioni/the-factbook-on-the-illicit-trade-in-tobacco-products-2-italia/ Shelf Number: 132816 Keywords: Cigarette Smuggling Cigarettes Illegal Trade Illicit Tobacco Tobacco |
Author: TRANSCRIME Title: European Outlook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products Summary: This study calls for a new direction to be taken in the analysis of, and the fight against, the illicit trade in tobacco products (ITTP) in the European Union (EU). It suggests that the focus should be trained more closely on the reduction of criminal opportunities than on crime control policies. This requires a change of mindset: from the conviction of criminals, hoping that this will eventually reduce crime, to the actual reduction of crime through specific prevention strategies. The study adopts two approaches. The first part (Framing the scene: the ITTP in the European Union) takes a "horizontal approach" and analyses selected components of the illicit cigarette market in the EU. The second part (Zooming the scene: the ITTP in the EU Member States and beyond) adopts "a vertical approach" and examines in detail the illicit markets within each EU Member State, as well as the role of selected non-EU European countries in the EU illicit market. Both the horizontal and the vertical approaches underscore the regulatory and law enforcement dimensions that influence the size and type of the ITTP in Europe and beyond. If the illicit cigarette trade is to be reduced, it is necessary to understand the trade-off between regulation of the legal market and the risk of creating criminal opportunities in the illicit market. Currently, policymakers regulate the legal market while leaving the fight against the illicit market to law enforcement. The reduction of criminal opportunities may reduce this trade-off, thus maximizing health and minimizing crime with lower costs. Details: Trento: Transcrime - Universita degli Studi di Trento, 2015. 302p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 16, 2015 at: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/European-Outlook-on-the-ITTP.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Europe URL: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/European-Outlook-on-the-ITTP.pdf Shelf Number: 134933 Keywords: Cigarette SmugglingCigarettes (Europe)Illicit TradeOrganized CrimesTobacco |
Author: Furtick, Katie Title: The Effect of Cigarette Tax Rates on Illicit Trade: Lessons Learned in Canada Summary: U.S. President Barack Obama is proposing to raise the federal cigarette tax by nearly $1.00 per pack, hoping to bring in additional tax revenue to help fund universal preschool. Likewise, last year legislators in Massachusetts, Minnesota and New Hampshire put forth - and passed - proposals to increase their state's cigarette tax. Such proposals to increase cigarette or tobacco taxes are a politically expedient way to add to state or federal coffers while ostensibly reducing consumption. Since 2000, U.S. states have increased state cigarette tax rates more than 100 times and, generally, smoking prevalence in the U.S. has continued to decline, but is this decline caused by the increase in taxes? If so, what would happen to tobacco consumption if tax rates on cigarettes are cut? An understandably instinctive answer is that consumption would rise, as the price of cigarettes would presumably fall with the tax cut. However, this instinctive answer assumes that smokers purchase all of their cigarettes through legal means where the sale is taxed. In reality, this is not necessarily the case. Taxes have been shown to increase the size of black markets and to cause economic activity to move underground as price-sensitive individuals look for creative ways to evade taxation. Studies have shown that in the tobacco industry, consumers willingness to switch from smoking legally purchased cigarettes and tobacco to contraband products increases with tax hikes. Econometric analysis conducted by Jean-Francois Ouellet, Associate Professor of Marketing at HEC Montreal, and his co-authors Mariachiara Restuccia, Alexandre Tellier and Caroline Lacroix, found that each additional dollar in final applicable taxes raises the propensity to resort to consuming contraband cigarettes by 5.1 percent. This is consistent with the literature pertaining to counterfeit products - that for a product yielding the same benefit, consumers will typically consider a lower-priced option despite the fact that it is illegal. And where there is consumer demand for cheaper products, despite legality, there is profit incentive for players to provide those products on the black market. High cigarette taxes lead to inflated prices, which allow smugglers to profit from bringing cigarettes out of lower-taxed areas and re-selling them into higher-taxed jurisdictions. For instance, in the United States, cigarette prices differ from state to state depending on the states' cigarette tax regimes. Therefore, cigarettes sold in states with low tax rates can be bought and re-sold on the black market in states with high tax rates, yielding a profit for the seller. High taxes also increase the incentive for producing illegal cigarettes completely outside the tax regime. In this case, cigarettes are produced in illegal, unregulated factories and sold on the black market. The sum effect of these factors suggests that it is possible that rather than reducing cigarette consumption, high taxes might shift some consumption from the legal to the black market - that is, to smuggled and/or illegally produced cigarettes. The corollary of this is that tax cuts could drive out illicit trade without increasing overall cigarette consumption. Due to its dramatically varied cigarette taxation rates over the past two decades, Canada has witnessed first-hand the effects that taxes can have on illegal tobacco sales. It therefore provides an excellent case study of the effects of both increasing and decreasing such taxes. This policy brief begins with some background on tobacco taxes in Canadian history. It then analyzes how various changes in the law, both tax increases and cuts, have affected illicit trade, informing policy-makers on likely effects of taxation. Details: Los Angeles: Reason Foundation, 2014. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: Policy Brief 113: Accessed April 7, 2015 at: http://reason.org/files/cigarette_tax_illicit_trade.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Canada URL: http://reason.org/files/cigarette_tax_illicit_trade.pdf Shelf Number: 135178 Keywords: Black MarketCigarette SmugglingCigarette TaxesCigarettes (Canada)ContrabandIllegal ProductsTobacco |
Author: INTERPOL. Office of Legal Affairs Title: Countering Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products: A Guide for Policy-Makers Summary: Illicit trade in tobacco products (ITTP) is a global occurrence, affecting all regions and countries. It holds an allure for criminals to engage in it as tobacco products are light, small, easy to transport and to conceal. Tobacco is one of the most smuggled commodities in the world, allowing offenders to amass huge profits. Further, penalties are often not sufficient to act as a deterrent. Illicit trade in tobacco products has negative and harmful consequences for countries at many levels. It affects consumers' health, reduces States' budgets, creates unfair competition for legitimate businesses, and feeds organized criminal groups who channel the profits obtained into other illegal activities. This handbook aims to offer the first comprehensive legal analysis of the international legal framework against the ITTP. It provides guidance to policy-makers and law enforcement authorities on the implementation of key international instruments in the field, with an emphasis on the new Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products. The ITTP holds many challenges for governments. One of the biggest is the involvement of organized criminal networks which employ increasingly sophisticated and varied methods to counterfeit and smuggle products. INTERPOL recognizes this as a growing issue threatening the security of States. A joint and coordinated effort is needed to find and implement lasting solutions to this multi-faceted problem. Details: Lyon, France: INTERPOL Office of Legal Affairs, 2014. 290p. Source: Internet Resource: Legal handbook Series: Accessed February 26, 2016 at: http://www.interpol.int/Crime-areas/Trafficking-in-illicit-goods-and-counterfeiting/Legal-assistance/Legal-publications Year: 2014 Country: International URL: http://www.interpol.int/Crime-areas/Trafficking-in-illicit-goods-and-counterfeiting/Legal-assistance/Legal-publications Shelf Number: 137982 Keywords: Counterfeit GoodsIllicit GoodsIllicit TradeOrganized CrimeSmuggled GoodsTobaccoTobacco Smuggling |
Author: Caneppele, Stefano Title: Risky Behaviours Summary: This study presents data on the prevalence of the following risky behaviours: tobacco and alcohol consumption, drug use and gambling. The data were collected through a CAWI survey among high school, technical institute and vocational training centre students (15-19 years old). The survey was carried out in April/May 2014 in 12 schools located in the Trentino Province (Northern Italy). The study analised risky behaviours in relation to gender, age, citizenship, academic achievement and type of school attended. The findings are based on 1,200 questionnaires representative of the students in the province (21,465). Details: Trento: Transcrime, 2015. 11p. Source: Internet Resource: Transcrime Research in Brief 04: Accessed March 29, 2016 at: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Risky-behaviours-pdf.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Europe URL: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Risky-behaviours-pdf.pdf Shelf Number: 138354 Keywords: Alcohol Drug Abuse Gambling Risky Behaviors Tobacco |
Author: Calderoni, Francesco Title: France: the factbook on the illicit trade in tobacco products Summary: This report provides the French country profile of the project The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products . In France, the illicit trade in tobacco products is a key issue due to its high penetration in the French tobacco market, reaching 14.7% of total consumption in 2014 (KPMG 2015). Tobacco control policies are at the top of the French policy agenda, and a national action plans against the ITTP was launched in 2011. Moreover, the recent ratification of the Protocol Against Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (WHO FCTC), in November 2015, demonstrates France's commitment to tackling the illicit trade. The growing attention of the French Customs to tobacco smuggling is evidenced by the increasing number of seizures. WHAT CAN BE FOUND IN THIS REPORT? This report is updated at December 2015. It is organised into three chapters: -- Chapter one deals with the five drivers of the ITTP: society and economy, the legal market, regulation, the crime environment and enforcement. The drivers are important areas whose structures may positively or negatively impact on the ITTP. To enable comparison with other country profiles, five key indicators have been selected for each driver. The data for the driver indicators come from comparable sources (latest available years). When possible, the report provides the most up-to-date data from national sources. -- Chapter two focuses on the four components of the ITTP: demand, products, supply, modus operandi and geographical distribution. -- Chapter three identifies the key factors of the ITTP in France and frames the drivers in the components, analysing how different elements of the drivers influence the components of the ITTP. Details: Milan: Transcrime, 2016. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: The Factbook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products 8: Accessed July 12, 2016 at: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/The-Factbook-on-the-ITTP-France_EN.pdf Year: 2016 Country: France URL: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/The-Factbook-on-the-ITTP-France_EN.pdf Shelf Number: 139618 Keywords: Cigarette SmugglingCigarettesIllicit TradeOrganized CrimeTobacco |
Author: Calderoni, Francesco Title: The Belarusian Hub for Illicit Tobacco Summary: Key hubs are crucial sets of countries on the regional, continental or global map of the illicit trade in tobacco products (ITTP). The analysis of key hubs instead of single countries enables a more comprehensive understanding of the factors determining transnational illicit flows and a more effective identification of the strategies needed to fight and prevent the ITTP. The following elements often characterise key hubs: - medium to high levels of the ITTP in the hub, - significant price differentials of tobacco products across the hub, - extensive engagement of local manufacturers in the ITTP and - substantial flows of illicit tobacco to, within or from the hub to other countries. This report focuses on the Belarusian hub for illicit cigarettes. Belarus is the center of the hub because it is a source for illegal tobacco products destined to the EU. The surrounding countries are included for different reasons. Russia and Ukraine used to play a significant role in the ITTP flows and still remain important sources of illicit products. Other countries within the hub, such as Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, are both destination and transit countries of the Belarusian illicit tobacco flows. The report takes the name of the center of the hub. Details: Milan: Transcrime, 2013. 54p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 12, 2016 at: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/The-Belarusian-Hub-for-Illicit-Tobacco.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Belarus URL: http://www.transcrime.it/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/The-Belarusian-Hub-for-Illicit-Tobacco.pdf Shelf Number: 139622 Keywords: Cigarette SmugglingCigarettesIllicit TradeOrganized CrimeTobacco |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "The Harvest is in My Blood": Hazardous Child Labor in Tobacco Farming in Indonesia Summary: Indonesia is the world's fifth-largest tobacco producer, with more than 500,000 tobacco farms. Thousands of children, some as young as eight years old, work in hazardous conditions on these farms, exposed to nicotine, toxic pesticides, and other dangers. This work can have lasting consequences for their health and development. Large Indonesian companies, as well as some of the largest multinational tobacco companies in the world, buy the vast majority of tobacco grown in Indonesia and use it to manufacture tobacco products sold domestically and abroad. None of these companies do enough to ensure children are not working in hazardous conditions on farms in their supply chains. Based on interviews with more than 130 child workers, This report documents how child tobacco workers suffer symptoms consistent with acute nicotine poisoning, handle toxic chemicals, cut themselves with sharp tools, faint while working in extreme heat, and face other dangers. Few of the children interviewed, or their parents, understood the health risks of the work or were trained on safety measures. Children are particularly vulnerable to the harmful effects of tobacco farming because their brains and bodies are still developing. Nicotine exposure during childhood has been associated with mood disorders, and problems with memory, attention, impulse control, and cognition later in life. Human Rights Watch urges the Indonesian government and tobacco companies to ban children from work that involves direct contact with tobacco. Details: Hew York: HRW, 2016. 127p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 1, 2016 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/indonesia0516web_0.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Indonesia URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/indonesia0516web_0.pdf Shelf Number: 139921 Keywords: Child Abuse and NeglectChild LaborChild ProtectionHuman Rights AbusesTobacco |
Author: Prieger, James E. Title: Cigarette Taxes and Illicit Trade in Europe Summary: Cigarettes are highly taxed in Europe to discourage tobacco use and to fund public-health measures to mitigate the harms from tobacco consumption. At higher prices (more precisely, at higher differentials between licit and black-market prices) consumers substitute more toward illicit cigarettes. Illicit retail trade in cigarettes (IRTC) includes counterfeiting and smuggling - either of legally purchased products, from lower-tax to higher-tax jurisdictions, or of entirely non-tax-paid cigarettes. The existing literature includes claims that taxes are not an important factor determining the scale of IRTC. We investigate these claims with data from 1999-2013 in the European Union. We find that while the simple correlation between licit cigarette prices and the market share of illicit cigarettes in consumption is negative, raising prices in any one country would, on average, lead to substantial increases in the expected illicit market share and volume in that country. A one euro increase in tax per pack in a country is expected to increase illicit market share by 5 to 12 percentage points and increase illicit cigarette sales by 25% to 120% of the average consumption. We also find that the role of prices in stimulating IRTC is, empirically, far more important than the role of corruption. The results are robust to a host of alternative specifications and sources of data. Details: Pepperdine University, School of Public Policy Working Papers, 2016. 77p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 29, 2017 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2718519 Year: 2016 Country: Europe URL: Shelf Number: 146934 Keywords: CigarettesIllicit TradeTax EvasionTobacco |
Author: Bate, Roger Title: Large Cigarette Tax Hikes, Illicit Producers, and Organized Crime: Lessons from Pakistan Summary: With the stated aim of increasing revenue and discouraging smoking, Pakistan raised tobacco duties over the past five years. The result empowered illicit actors, with a flourishing of illicit production and smuggling of cigarettes. Revenue rose initially, only to fall back as untaxed products proliferated. While organized crime and local production interests were the big winners, smoking rates have remained largely unchanged. Pakistan's authorities have tried to resolve the problem through better enforcement and lowering of duties for certain products, but overall the lesson learned is that rapid duty increases have significant negative effects that are difficult to reverse when illegal supply cannot be controlled. Details: Washington, DC: American Enterprise Institute, 2018. 10p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 8, 2018 at: https://www.aei.org/publication/large-cigarette-tax-hikes-illicit-producers-and-organized-crime-lessons-from-pakistan/ Year: 2018 Country: Pakistan URL: https://www.aei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Large-Cigarette-Tax-Hikes-Illicit-Producers-and-Organized-Crime.pdf Shelf Number: 151466 Keywords: CigarettesIllicit TradeOrganized CrimeSmugglingSmuggling of GoodsTobacco |
Author: Neumann, Vanessa Title: The many criminal heads of the Golden Hydra: How the Tri-Border Area's Interlocking Arcs of Crime Create LatAm's #1 International Fusion Center Summary: The Tri-Border Area ('TBA') that straddles the intersection of Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil is considered the 'Golden Hydra,' as it is the lucrative regional entry point of many 'heads' of transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) that all lead to the underworld of illicit trade for more than forty years. This is partly a consequence of its ethnic composition and open borders, set by a policy to facilitate immigration from the Middle East, and also the connecting infrastructure to facilitate cross-border trade. The TBA gained notoriety in the 1990s after the bombings of the Israeli embassy (1992) and the AMIA center (1994), both in Buenos Aires, by Lebanese Hezbollah militants. The money, operatives and bomb parts all moved through the TBA. After 9/11, it again became the target of US counter-terrorism surveillance, as a 'safe haven' for terrorists from groups like Al Qaeda and Hamas, in addition to Hezbollah. With the world's attention firmly focused on the Middle East since then, the TBA has grown into a mini-state that benefits a corrupt elite while maintaining a large and efficient money laundering center for the world's organized crime and terrorist groups, not just in the region, but throughout the world, yielding TCOs and FTOs an estimated US$ 43 billion a year. Illicit trade of all sorts (including the illicit trade in tobacco products, 'ITTP') has been growing rapidly in recent years, corrupting good governance in all three countries and exploiting the degrading security and economic situation in both Argentina and Brazil. The TBA has become a regional crime fusion center where corrupt politicians work with drug cartels from Bolivia, Colombia, Mexico and Brazil, as well as organized crime groups from China, in conjunction with a large Lebanese merchant community, part of which gives support to Hezbollah. Though illicit funding for Hezbollah is generally high on the US agenda, that is not the case for the countries of the TBA. For historical reasons, Hezbollah is on the political agenda of Argentina. Brazil, however, does not consider Hezbollah a terrorist group; it considers only three groups as terrorists: the Taliban, Al Qaeda and ISIS. Paraguay considers Lebanese Hezbollah a group that poses a problem for its neighbors Argentina and Brazil, but not for Paraguay. authorities and mandates, Paraguay is constitutionally structured for corruption and illicit trade. Despite its smaller population and economy, it is the source and economic driver of illicit trade and money laundering affecting the other two countries. At the heart is Paraguay's lame-duck president, Horacio Cartes, the architect of the region's ITTP; he is the owner of Tabesa tobacco company. Furthermore, the removal of Carts from the presidency and its assumption by his successor (and fellow party member) Mario Abdo Benitez , will not reduce this illicit trade: Cartes will continue to wield tremendous power as a senator; several of his close friends will also enter the Senate, and his party won the presidency in the April 2018 elections. Security is the highest-ranked agenda item in Brazil's upcoming presidential elections in October 2018. This is primarily because of the military operations in Rio's favelas, where the criminal group Comando Vermelho (CV) and its affiliates are so widespread and heavily-armed, they are challenging the state for supremacy. The CV is enabled and funded by drugs and weapons that come mainly from Paraguay. This growing illicit trade has also turned Brazil into a prime export point for narcotics from South America to North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. Because of the complexity of the TBA's organized crime cluster, as well as the weakness of regional counter-terrorist protocols, we recommend engaging international authorities with regional mandates over the core crimes of corruption, money laundering, and proceeds of crime, with the aim of dismantling the source from the fusion centre. These authorities include: the IMF, UNODC, UN CTED, and FATF. Given that the US is largely absent from the region, it is recommended to open pathways to the US and European enforcement communities and the aforementioned authorities through well-structured workshops in Washington, DC and other key cities to build awareness. The other way to influence regional ITTP is to become a larger stakeholder in the Paraguayan tobacco industry. Details: New York: Counter Terrorism Project, 2018. 119p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed Dec. 12, 2018 at: https://www.counterextremism.com/sites/default/files/The%20Many%20Criminal%20Heads%20of%20the%20Golden%20Hydra%20%28May%202018%29.pdf Year: 2018 Country: South America URL: https://www.counterextremism.com/sites/default/files/The%20Many%20Criminal%20Heads%20of%20the%20Golden%20Hydra%20%28May%202018%29.pdf Shelf Number: 154457 Keywords: Illicit TobaccoIllicit TradeMoney LaunderingOrganized CrimeProceeds of CrimeSmugglingTerroristsTobacco |
Author: Sindicich, Natasha Title: An Overview of the 2015 Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System Summary: key findings - 763 regular psychostimulant users (RPU) participants took part in the EDRS in 2015. Participants were primarily recruited through word-of-mouth and the internet. - Preference for ecstasy has significantly declined and cannabis has significantly increased with 30% of the EDRS sample reporting ecstasy and 29% reporting cannabis as their drug of choice in 2015. The proportion reporting recent use of cannabis has also significantly increased as has use of cannabis when 'coming down' from ecstasy. - Despite a significant decrease in the proportion reporting recent use of ecstasy, the most popular form of ecstasy consumed on a regular basis was still pill (tablet) form. There remains an increasing trend in the use of MDMA crystal/rock with 2015 being the second year this data has been collected. This form was considered to be a more potent form of ecstasy with 56% of MDMA crystal/rock users reporting it being of 'high' purity compared to 20% of those reporting pills, powder and caps as 'high'. - Speed powder remained the form of methamphetamine used by most RPU with a quarter of the sample reporting recent use. However, recent use of speed powder and base was reported by significantly lower proportions of RPU in 2015 compared to 2014. The recent use of ice/crystal remained stable in 2015 with 1 in 5 participants reporting recent ice/crystal use. There was also a significant increase in those reporting that ice/crystal was 'easy' or 'very easy' to obtain. - The recent use of new psychoactive substances (NPS) remained steady with one-third of the sample having used NPS in the past six months. The frequency of use remains low (1-2 days over a six month period). The most commonly reported NPS were: 2C-B, DMT and NBOMe. - Synthetic cannabis stabilized at low levels (6%) which is comparable to 2014 figures. - Recent use of cocaine, LSD, ketamine and GHB was also stable from 2014 to 2015. - The recent use of cannabis and tobacco increased significantly among RPU in 2015. - Alcohol is the second most commonly used drug among this group with 97% reporting recent use on a median of 48 days (twice weekly). Details: Sydney, Australia: National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales, 2015. 6p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 8, 2019 at: https://ndarc.med.unsw.edu.au/resource/overview-2015-ecstasy-and-related-drugs-reporting-system Year: 2015 Country: Australia URL: https://ndarc.med.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/ndarc/resources/EDRS%20October%202015%20FINAL_0.pdf Shelf Number: 154302 Keywords: Alcohol Australia Cannabis Crystal Ecstasy GHB Ketamine LSD Methamphetamine Psychoactive Substances Rock Speed Tobacco |
Author: Kulick, Jonathan Title: Empty Discarded Pack Data and the Prevalence of Illicit Trade in Cigarettes Summary: Illicit trade in tobacco products (ITTP) creates many harms including reduced tax revenues; damages to the economic interests of legitimate actors; funding for organized-crime and terrorist groups; negative effects of participation in illicit markets, such as violence and incarceration; and reduced effectiveness of smoking-reduction policies, leading to increased damage to health. To study the prevalence of tax avoidance and ITTP, we analyze a large, novel set of data from empty discarded pack (EDP) studies. In EDP studies, teams of researchers collect all cigarette packs discarded in publicly accessible spaces of selected neighborhoods. Packs are examined for the absence of local tax stamps, signs of non-authentic packaging or stamps, and other indications of potential tax evasion or counterfeit product. We describe the data and analyze the prevalence of ITTP in three California metropolitan areas. Data from 2011 to 2015 are available, yielding 32,000 observations. Each observation includes dozens of variables covering the brand, location to the ZIP code level, tax status, counterfeit status, and other information about the pack. There is modest evidence of tax avoidance (up to 19.8% of packs in San Diego) and illicit trade (no more than 10% in Los Angeles, 17% in San Francisco, or 20% in San Diego under the broadest assumptions), which includes bootlegging, counterfeits, cigarettes produced for illicit-market sales, and cigarettes without any tax stamps. California increased its excise tax on cigarettes by $2 per pack (to $2.87) on April 1, 2017; these data will inform future studies of the effect of this increase on ITTP. In our econometric investigation, we explore the determinants of ITTP. Prices in other states matter a lot: A dollar increase per hour of driving time in the price differential with other states is associated with a 36 to 49 percentage point higher probability that tax was not paid for a pack. Tax avoidance also rises with the proximity of licensed cigarette retailers (at least where they are most common). Other parts of the variation in ITTP are due to the differing demographic makeup of the areas. Income, at least in some ranges, was found to have a negative impact on tax avoidance. The fraction of the population that is Black has a negative effect on tax avoidance, compared to the omitted race/ethnicity category of Whites. The median age of the area has an inverted U-shaped impact on avoidance. Details: Los Angeles: Botec Analysis, 2019. 63p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 14, 2019 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3320922 Year: 2019 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3320922 Shelf Number: 154593 Keywords: Cigarettes Counterfeit Cigarettes Counterfeit Goods Illicit Cigarettes Illicit Markets Illicit Trade Organized Crime Tax Evasion Tobacco |
Author: KPMG Title: Eurasian Economic Union Illicit Cigarette Report Summary: Key findings: Illicit cigarette consumption has grown rapidly in the Eurasian Economic Union from 2015 to 2018 - Illicit cigarette consumption rose from 0.6% to 6.8% of total consumption in the past 4 years, representing over 20bn cigarettes in 2018 - Had these cigarettes been sold legally in 2018, an additional 68bn RUB would have been collected in taxes (VAT & Excise) across the Eurasian Economic Union in 2018, with 99% of the taxes lost from Russia - A large proportion of the growth occurred in the Russian Federation, where non-domestic cigarette consumption increased from 0.7% to 8.7% of consumption, of which 90% was illicit. Widening price differences between countries and free movement of goods and people are two possible drivers behind the growth in illicit cigarette consumption - The price differences (in particular between Belarus and Russia) have increased by over 40%, making cigarettes from Belarus more affordable(с) - In addition, the establishment of the EEU (in 2015) enabled free movement of goods and people, reducing customs inspections between countries and removing limits on goods imported for personal consumption - The 8 billion Belarusian labelled cigarettes identified in Russia were not supported by the number of travellers buying for their own personal consumption, indicating that a high volume of cigarettes are contraband. Furthermore the seizures of millions of Belarusian labelled cigarettes in Russia indicated that these cigarettes are transported by criminal networks. Distributors of illicit cigarettes have grown to exploit the price differences, reduced affordability and the lack of personal allowance quotas when travelling between EEU countries, especially from Belarus to Russia - Belarus is the primary source of illicit cigarettes, with almost 8 billion of the 20 billion illicit cigarettes identified in this study coming from Belarusian trademark-owned manufacturers, whilst production capacity was reported at 29 billion cigarettes(4) which is not supported by domestic consumption (estimated at 16 billion) - Belarusian labelled cigarettes were identified across Russia, indicating that they are being purchased by consumers who are not travelling across the Belarusian border - In addition, 47% of C&C identified had no identifiable origin including counterfeit, illicit whites and cigarettes with suspicious Russian tax stamps, which have had no taxes paid in any jurisdiction. Some may be illegally manufactured inside Russia - Illicit cigarette smuggling has been shown to help enable Organised Criminal Groups (OCGs), using similar networks to sell other products and its rapid growth in EEU is unlikely to be any different, as profits can be high whilst penalties remain low. Throughout the report, our analysis has focussed on the following categories of cigarette consumption: Legal domestic consumption - Cigarettes legally purchased and consumed within the country of study, based on In Market Sales data provided by the tobacco industry Non-domestic legal (ND(L)) - ND(L) represents cigarettes which are purchased in another country but legally consumed in the country of study, through cross-border or tourism purchases. This represents 0.8% of total consumption in the EEU Illicit consumption - divided into three components: - Illicit Whites: Cigarettes that are usually manufactured in one country/market but which the evidence suggests have been smuggled across borders during their transit to the destination market under review where they have limited or no legal distribution and are sold without payment of tax - Contraband (Other): Cigarettes where the tax was paid legally in one country, but the cigarettes were taken to another country and re-sold without any applicable tax, mainly when the excise tax regimes in the source country are lower than the destination country. Many of these cigarettes originated from an EEU country and whilst they were legally transported (due to no legal personal allowance limits) they were then re-sold illegally - Counterfeit: Cigarettes that deliberately copy a legally traded brand, deceiving consumers who believe that they are purchasing this brand. Counterfeit was only identified by participating trademark owners in the Empty Pack Survey - Russian suspicious tax stamps: Cigarettes where further analysis has revealed that the packs may have been sold without the payment of tax, despite bearing domestic labelling Details: London: Author, 2019. 48p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 28, 2019 at: https://www.stopillegal.com/docs/default-source/external-docs/eea-illicit-cigarette-report-2018-english.pdf?Status=Temp&sfvrsn=ab4677d7_2 Year: 2019 Country: Europe URL: https://www.stopillegal.com/docs/default-source/external-docs/eea-illicit-cigarette-report-2018-english.pdf?Status=Temp&sfvrsn=ab4677d7_2 Shelf Number: 156923 Keywords: AsiaCigarettes ContrabandCounterfeit Cigarettes Counterfeit Goods EuropeIllicit Cigarettes Illicit Markets Illicit Trade Organized Crime Tax Evasion Tobacco |