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| Europe |
| French strike over cigarette prices |
| 2003-10-20 |
| Hey! The French are on strike! France’s 34,000 tobacconists on Monday staged their first ever national strike in protest against a sharp rise in cigarette prices. The strike coincided with a 20% increase in the price of a pack of cigarettes, the second of three planned price rises. "Three separate price increases will push the cost of smoking up by half in the space of a year," said BBC News correspondent in Paris, Quentin Somerville. France has long had some of the cheapest cigarettes in Europe but is now trying to persuade people to quit the habit. French tobacconists have a monopoly on cigarette sales and take a percentage of every packet sold. A state sponsored monopoly in France? Shocking! The price rises will force tobacconists out of business, and the number of bankruptcies has already gone up by 57% in a year, according to the Confederation of Licensed Tobacco Sellers. "The government says loud and clear that it wants the day to come when there is not a single smoker left in France," said Rene Le Pape, president of the confederation. "What I want is to make sure that our network of 34,000 traders doesn’t disappear as well." ...and how you gonna work that out? Maybe you can retrain them as pimps or something. The government has offered an aid package worth around 120m euros to help the worst-affected tobacconists, but the shopkeepers say it is not enough. Ve needz,... how you say,...more. The price rises are designed to encourage people to stop smoking. However, critics say the increases are being used to help bail out France’s troubled state finances. There’s one idea they don’t mind copying from us. When do they start suing the evil Big Tobacco? Nine out of 10 tobacconists were closed for the day, and 60 demonstrations were planned across the country. The number of people smoking has been declining slowly, but around 42% of the population still smoke. 42%! Sure, cut off their butts. They’ll be ready to go to war anywhere, anytime, with anyone. Think they’re rude now? The French government is particularly worried that smoking remains popular with pregnant women and young people. Puff away, hon. Remember, you’re smoking for two now. "Putting up prices by 25% means reducing consumption by 10% and in the years ahead preventing 10,000 deaths a year," said Health Minister Jean-Francois Mattei. Good. That’ll compensate for the death tolls from those summer heatwaves. After the change, a packet of cigarettes will cost more than five euros a pack, about £3.50, much more than in many of France’s neighbours. But there is nothing to stop consumers driving to neighbouring countries to stock up, and tobacconists in border regions say their business is being ruined by the huge differential in prices. ...sounds like New Hampshire. Police are more concerned at the rise in large-scale smuggling, which is already estimated to account for up to 30% of cigarette sales in Britain. |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #7 You'll save money if you send it by the shipload, Mojo. It's cheaper than flying Air-France. |
| Posted by: Charles 2003-10-20 10:55:14 PM |
| #6 Time to get into the French black market? Hmmm... Let's see...North Carolina to Holland... |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-10-20 9:47:56 PM |
| #5 JFM, I was being sarcastic about uncorruptable French police. |
| Posted by: Stephen 2003-10-20 6:24:12 PM |
| #4 I really, really get disgusted with government-sponsored social engineering. Studies have been totally unable to determine if changing the price of cigarettes here in the US has had any effect on whether people continue to smoke or not. All it does is increase the irritation level people feel toward their government. Yes, it COULD lead to something - look at what the Stamp Act did in the US some 250 years ago. Can the government guarantee what the result will be? Not on your (or THEIR) life. Personally, I've found that juggling live hand grenades is NOT conducive to a long and happy life. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-10-20 6:20:27 PM |
| #3 Stephen French police is not famous for being uncorruptable (cf Casablanca "I am a poor corrupt government employee). French gendarmes are the uncorruptible people not police. |
| Posted by: JFM 2003-10-20 5:05:00 PM |
| #2 Love government spin-actual increase 50%,Health Minister talks of benefits of 25% increase.Guess we know fallback position if opposition gets too much. Since French police are famous for being uncorruptable,wonder how worried northern police are now they know they will soon be offered massive bribes to look other way when the cig.trucks roll south. |
| Posted by: Stephen 2003-10-20 4:42:52 PM |
| #1 planned price rises this is sort of like.... communism!! |
| Posted by: Rafael 2003-10-20 4:41:46 PM |