A few days ago, The UK's House of Commons votes pro to Plain Cigarette Packaging bill with 367 to 113, and House of Lords has approved a bill. From May 2016 England must standardise cigarette packaging, as Australia do. Just a few weeks ago, the same law was adopted in Ireland.

As response, the tobacco companies promised that they will fight for their rights and will not allow to this law came into force and would take legal action against the government.

According to this bill all cigarette packs should have the same form, color, be without colored pictures and trademarks, but necessarily include graphic health warnings.

The news about Plain Cigarette Packaging approving was supported by all representatives of the anti-tobacco companies and health charities. They rely on the fact that cigarette plain packs without attractive look will help people quit smoking and young people from smoking attempts.

However, the Forest UK-based media and political lobbying group, headed by Simon Clarke, opposes smoking bans and discrimination against smokers, he started "Hands Off" campaign that will protect the smokers rights. In his words, such bill is a "gesture politics" and "a distraction of what really matters to the people". He stresses that politicians should pay more attention to "immigration and terrorism", but not to how a pack of cigarettes look like, and smokers discrimination.

According to conducted studies and surveys, a large percentage of teenagers who started smoking, did it not because cigarette packs are attractive, but because their friends, surrounding people or someone in their family smokes. A teenager by starting smoking simply copies adults, or he himself wants to look older.

Imperial Tobacco Group's spokesperson - Simon Evans, stressed that taking this decision, the government simply left the company "no choice" to take legal action to defend their rights.

According to data and reports from Australia (where a plain packaging law came into force in 2012), it not greatly affected the number of smokers. "There's simply no credible evidence that plain packaging would meet its objectives," he says. At the same time, these actions have caused an increase in illicit trade and a degree of consumer downtrading, which is very bad for the smokers health due to the poor quality of smuggled tobacco products. Also suffered from this law tobacco companies, investors and the country's incomes.

www.UKcigs.co