IN THE SPOTLIGHT: TOBACCO PRODUCTS CONTROL BILL

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: TOBACCO PRODUCTS CONTROL BILL

• 29 December 2023
• Parliament
• SA Legal Academy

Although the National Assembly’s Health Committee has not met to consider the Tobacco Products & Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill since 31 May 2023, nationwide public hearings began last month in Gauteng. They followed a committee notice issued in July 2023 calling for written submissions and will probably end with a first round of parliamentary hearings, when stakeholders will have the opportunity present their views.

According to a committee media statement published on 27 November 2023, three public hearings have been held to date – ‘with residents of Tshwane … expressing contrasting views on the Bill’.

During these hearings, its critics apparently voiced concern about provisions:

• inadequately differentiating between electronic delivery systems and combustible cigarettes, and
• perceived to:
  • ‘criminalise’ small-scale traders in legitimate tobacco products
  • ‘enable’ the growth of the ‘illicit cigarette market’, and thus
  • impact negatively on the tobacco industry’s contribution to the national fiscus.

The statement tends to suggest that critics believe ‘reliable information’ and public education programmes about ‘the dangers of … tobacco products’ would more effectively address health-related issues, thereby reducing mortalities.

Concerns about a ‘gap’ in the Bill’s ‘enforcement mechanism’ provisions have also been expressed.

As has been widely reported in the media, a draft Bill was released in May 2018 for public comment. It has since been revised and considered by government’s social partners in the National Economic Development & Labour Council. This is according to Health Deputy Minister Sibongiseni Dhlomo, who is quoted in a Parliamentary Monitoring Group report on the 31 May 2023 committee meeting when members were briefed on the Bill’s proposals.

A revised version of the Bill presumably reflecting some of the input received during the public consultation process was approved by Cabinet on 21 September 2022 for tabling in Parliament and was formally introduced three months later. Its overarching objective is to align South Africa’s tobacco control legislation with World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention requirements, among other things by:

• making it mandatory for certain indoor areas and portions of some outdoor areas to be 100% smoke-free
• banning cigarette vending machines
• prohibiting tobacco product displays at points of sale
• standardising tobacco product packaging and labelling, and
• regulating electronic nicotine and non-nicotine delivery systems.

Please click the links below for more information:

• Bill
• WHO framework convention
• 27 November 2023 committee media statement on public hearings
• July 2023 notice calling for submissions
• I June 2023 committee media statement on briefing
• briefing document
• Cabinet media statement announcing Bill’s approval for tabling in Parliament
• draft Bill released in May 2018 for comment

Published by SA Legal Academy Policy Watch

0 COMMENTS

LEAVE A COMMENT