Tobacco giant suing Australian govt 'a warning' for NZ
Tobacco giant Philip Morris suing the Australian government for introducing plain packaging laws for tobacco should send shockwaves through this country as it seeks a free trade deal involving the US, says an academic critic of the deal.
American company Philip Morris' Hong Kong arm launched legal action today against the Australian government over plans to strip company logos from cigarette packages and replace them with grisly images of cancerous mouths, sickly children and bulging, blinded eyes.
Several outraged cigarette makers have threatened lawsuits but Philip Morris is the first of those companies to file claim for compensation, which could run to billions.
The tobacco company says the treaty protects companies' property, including intellectual property such as trademarks. The plain packaging proposal severely diminishes the value of the company's trademark, Philip Morris spokeswoman Anne Edwards told The Associated Press.
"Our brands are really one of the absolute key valuable assets that we have as a company -- it's what helps us compete, it's what enables us to distinguish our products,'' Edwards said. "This move ... would essentially amount to confiscation of our brand in Australia."
Jane Kelsey, of the University of Auckland Law School, said the move to sue the Australian government as it tried to protect the health of its citizens was exactly what opponents had been warning could happen if US firms were given powers to sue the New Zealand Government under the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
Philip Morris had found a back door route to protect its profits by a "classic exercise of treaty shopping" -- using an obscure bilateral investment Treaty that Australia signed with Hong Kong in 1991, Prof Kelsey said.
"The champions of these agreements dismiss concerns that they could be used to challenge public policies that are in the national interest, such as tobacco controls, offshore mining regulation or stricter telecommunications laws.
"This development should send shock waves through the Parliament, local government and ordinary citizens," she said.
"It's clearly not enough to stop these powers being included in a TPP. All New Zealand's trade and investment agreements that have investor-state enforcement powers need to be revisited as well."
New Zealand is involved in TPP negotiations, which is the first multi-party free trade agreement linking Asia, the Pacific and the Americas.
Details of what is at stake have not been made public and opponents say the TPP will also allow American drug interests to water down the powers of this country's Government drug buying agency Pharmac.
The Australian government denied its tobacco legislation breaks any laws and said it would not back down.
Health Minister Nicola Roxon said the Australian government would not be deterred by tobacco companies making threats or taking legal action.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard also brushed off Philip Morris' threats. "We're not going to be intimidated by big tobacco's tactics," she told Australian Broadcasting Corp.
The legal notice filed Monday opens up a three-month period of negotiation between the two sides. Philip Morris said if a "satisfactory outcome" isn't achieved by the end of the three months, it will seek arbitration.
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Comments and questions11
Australia should counter-sue Philip Morris for the entire smoking-related health costs to the Australian taxpayer (health system costs) resulting from cancer, heart disease, and smoking-related illnesses. And it should threaten to extend that across the board of big-tobacco products. The basis of the suit should be willful criminal negligence and posing a knowing danger to public health. Every throat cancer, lung cancer, and heart attack victim of tobacco should have their chance to testify, and the trial should be public and televised.
If they want to talk brands, let's talk brand accountability. Treat these brand entities and CEOs and shareholders as the drug-dealing killers-for-profit they are.
Send them the tax payers medical bills for every cancer patient that has smoked!!
Filthy cancer peddling scum!! eying up the next generation!!
Yes! And while at it - why not ensure the makers of alcohol products put nutritional information on their products?
How much sugar / carbs/ calories / what goes into it?
You can understand why Phillip Morris is based in Hong Kong, with the number of chinks that smoke.
Look like Phillip Morris to sell its cigarettes or sue anyone for its PROFITABILITY....no mercy?
A lesson that the Australian government should learn is not to mess with big business, how would u like it if the aust government tomorrow said we dont like the name you gave to your child, we want you to change it to a name we want. that can never happen.
The Australian government loves to collect tax more than anything else including the health of its voters.
So both Australia and New Zealand have huge medical bills from smoking both direct and indirect. If either country was serious about stopping smoking they would simply tell the tobacco companies as from such and such a date smoking will be banned in the respective countries.
It's not likley to happen as the tax collected is alot more than what the medical bills cost
What governments and health departments all over the world need to do is to stop playing games. If you really want people to stop smoking then spend some of the billions that the poor addicted smokers pay in additional taxes to find a way for these addicts to get clear of their addiction. Addicts pay very little attention to images or threats - many would like to stop their addiction to nicotine. However, what they are offered is a nicotine replacement therapy i.e. instead of taking their nicotine in via smoke they can take it via a more socially acceptable form - gum and patches. But this still leaves them addicted to nicotine. Health departments are more conciliatory towards heroine addicts than they are towards nicotine addicts and yet everyone knows that nicotine is more addictive and harder to give up. Governments - if you want to stop the Phillip Morrises of this world then find a way for the chronically addicted to give up the toxic poison that these companies peddle.
Lets fix the tobacco companies for good and t legislate to outright ban the sale of cigarettes in our countries ( but not cigars) but lets leave alcohol alone - OK ?? !!
Good on the tobacco companies. If the government doesn't like it then they should ban it . I used to smoke 40 a day & I know from experience that no smoker will pay exorbitant prices to a black market drug dealer for a pack of smokes. They might as well spend the money on a decent drug, not tobacco, at least they'd get something out of it rather than just an addiction.
The government can't have it both ways, crapping all over the tobacco companies logos and products, but clipping the ticket for a profit whilst allowing it's voting public to damage themselves. Personally I think the government are just as bad, if not worse, than the tobacco companies - the tobacco companies have no obligation to NZ citizens, but the NZ government does, or should I say is supposed to.
Whatever you think about Hone Harawira - he deserves full credit for the leading role he has played in helping to achieve significant movement in the fight against 'BIG TOBACCO'.
He has proven to have been extremely effective on this issue, which has such significant health impacts on Maori, through helping to achieve the Maori Affairs Select Committee Inquiry into the Tobacco Industry.
http://www.maoriparty.org/index.php?pag=cms&id=173&p=toa---january-2011.html
"Our very own Tai Tokerau MP Hone Harawira also stepped up the campaign by initiating a inquiry into Māori related tobacco death by Parliament's Māori Affairs Select Committee.
We are making significant progress and the momentum must be continued.
The past 12 months have been the most rapid in the history of making policy around tobacco control.
Just over a year ago, the select committee announced it would carry out an inquiry into the tobacco industry and in particular the consequences of tobacco use for Māori.
In March, our co-leader, and Associate Minister of Health, Tariana Turia initiated a public consultation on a proposal to ban tobacco displays in retail outlets. In April results from the 2009 tobacco use survey showed that the current smoking rates for 15-64 year olds had dropped to 21.8%.
In real numbers that's about 60,000 fewer smokers, in real numbers that is estimated to be more than 10,000 Māori. These are fantastic results which demonstrate that people are starting to recognise the serious harms that come from smoking and saying that it's just not worth it.
Of course the most critical fact that motivates all of us to be here today is that 45% of Māori aged 15 to 64 years are smokers.
One in two long term smokers will die of smoking related diseases. Those, about 5000 every year, who die lose on average 15 years of life.
None of these statements are new but we offer no apologies in repeating them.
We are still losing generations of our people, dying in middle age.
Even more tragic is the fact that almost half the sudden unexplained deaths of Māori infants are attributed to smoking.
The biggest issue of all, bigger even than the fact that people are smoking, is the root causes for why people smoke."
________________________________
Now - 'BIG (bullying) TOBACCO' are desperately fighting back...........
"NZPA | Tuesday June 28, 2011 | 9 comments
Tobacco giant suing Australian govt 'a warning' for NZ
Tobacco giant Philip Morris suing the Australian government for introducing plain packaging laws for tobacco should send shockwaves through this country as it seeks a free trade deal involving the US, says an academic critic of the deal."
__________________________________
WHY?
Because of the recommendations arising from the Final Government Response' to this Select Committee Inquiry:
http://www.parliament.nz/en-NZ/PB/Presented/Papers/8/6/0/49DBHOH_PAP21175_1-Government-Final-Response-to-Report-of-the-M-ori.htm
(See pg 7
"Plain packaging
Recommendation 7
That the tobacco industry be required to provide tobacco products exclusively in plain packaging, harmonising with the proposed requirement in Australia from 2012.
Response
The Government is monitoring Australia's progress on its proposal to legislate for plain packaging of tobacco products in 2012, and will consider the possibility on NZ aligning with Australia. "
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Shouldn't the New Zealand Government - not tobacco multinational companies decide what's best for the health of New Zealanders?
If 'Free Trade' agreements mean the loss of NZ Government sovereignty to decide such issues - why on earth would we want a bar of them?
Penny Bright
http://waterpressure.wordpress.com
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