Cigarette and vaping manufacturers, informal traders, taverns and restaurants are worried proposed new bans will devastate businesses. (Getty Images)
A proposed tobacco bill banning cigarette branding on packaging, the display of tobacco and vaping products, and removal of smoking areas at restaurants will fuel illicit trade and devastate manufacturers and small businesses, leading to job losses, industry players say.
They issued the warning in response to the Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill released for public comment from 25 June to 4 August.
The bill, which seeks to “reduce the incidence of tobacco-related illness, disability and death” proposes to institute a 100% smoke-free rule for indoor and certain outdoor places, ban the sale of cigarettes in vending machines and the sale of “loose” cigarettes.
It also prohibits the display of tobacco and e-cigarettes at points of sale. Retailers can only provide products, on request, to people over the age of 18. It will aso enforce standardised uniform, plain colour and texture packaging and labelling for tobacco and e-cigarette products with graphic health warnings, among other restrictions. Penalties for violating the act include up to 10 years imprisonment, a fine or both.
Its definition of “enclosed” includes partly enclosed areas such as balconies or decks and non-permanent structures such as marquee tents and gazebos, Restaurant Association of South Africa chief executive Wendy Alberts said this week.
She said restaurants, which are still battling to recover from debt incurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, will have to remodel their premises to exclude smoking areas, and put up “no smoking or vaping” signs. Additionally, restaurants will be banned from selling tobacco or vape products.
Alberts said the ban on smoking during Covid-19 lockdowns had fuelled the illicit tobacco trade. The government argued at the time that the ban was needed to keep people out of hospitals, citing what it said were studies showing that smoking increased the risks associated with contracting the virus.
“All the government is doing now is putting more laws in place and criminalising hard working businesses like ourselves, who contribute to tax. The truth is if they don’t have a plan to shut down the underground illicit trade, more tax money will go into the illicit trade. We have learned that bans lead to unintended consequences,” she said.
National Liquor Traders convenor Lucky Ntimane said it would be impossible to police the legislation.
“There are 39 000 taverns selling cigarettes behind the counter, how is anyone going to stop that? I think the government is just trying to create things to show they are working, but it isn’t going to work,” he said.
“These laws are going to be openly defied; this is going to further support the illegal markets. You will just have someone selling next to the tavern the way they sell drugs. So, all these petty crimes are just going to become a part of our society.”
Rosheda Muller, president of the National Informal Traders Alliance of South Africa, which represents thousands of traders, hawkers and spaza shop owners, called for a 60-day extension to the deadline for submissions. She said the short time allocated was an attempt by the government to “railroad” the legislation through parliament.
“If the government really wants to hear what informal traders think about this bill, and the impact it will have on informal trade, they need to give us the time to do it properly. The vast majority of traders don’t even know about the bill yet, let alone understand the impact that it has on their livelihoods and ability to trade,” she said.
“There are a number of specific provisions in the bill which will have a negative impact on informal traders, but one of the most damaging clauses is a ban on the sale of single cigarette sticks.”
“This provision will have a devastating impact on informal trade, as the majority of traders sell singles to their customers. This is because customers either don’t want a whole box of cigarettes at a time, but mostly because they cannot afford to buy a whole box. This ban will either not be implemented in the informal trade, or create opportunities for corrupt policemen to extract bribes.”
She said the 10-year prison sentence was “beyond comprehension”.
“The current prison sentence for aggravated assault is three years, but the government wants to send informal traders to prison for ten years for selling a legal product. This is madness.”
British American Tobacco (BAT) South Africa general manager Johnny Moloto said the law would accelerate the destruction of the legal tobacco value chain and permanently entrench a dominant illicit trade, without reducing smoking.
“The 2020 [pandemic] tobacco sales ban, which South Africa’s courts declared unconstitutional, demonstrated the effects of prohibition as consumers were forced to experiment with brands they had never heard of before. Illicit trade skyrocketed,” he said.
“The market has still not recovered and the illicit trade now accounts for up to 70% of cigarettes sold in South Africa.
“It is beyond comprehension that the department of health wants to introduce measures like plain packaging and retail display bans that will simply incentivise remaining smokers of legal cigarettes to migrate to illicit products,” Moloto added.
Asanda Gcoyi, chief executive of the Vapour Products Association of South Africa, called on the government to adopt a tobacco harm reduction policy informed by credible science as a basis for regulating the vaping industry.
“This requires an open mind that recognises smokers are addicted to nicotine and for those who do not have the will or the means to quit, the objective should be to give them tools to reduce the harm derived from smoking. The current version of the bill is not grounded on harm reduction and will do more harm than good in the fight against youth vaping and smoking,” Gcoyi said.
“Parliament should go beyond simply just calling for comments. It should also undertake an extensive review of the literature on vaping in order to arrive at a balanced policy not influenced by the ideological preferences of the anti-vaping lobby.”