LONDON: Britain on Thursday published draft regulations that would force tobacco firms to sell cigarettes in unbranded packaging with graphic health warnings as it prepared to legislate on the issue to try to improve public health.
Despite stiff opposition from the tobacco industry, the government said in April it wanted to bring in such laws after a review found such packaging rules would reduce the rate of children taking up smoking.
The regulations, published as part of the government's final six-week consultation on the matter, set out guidelines such as packet and text colours modelled on those used in Australia, the first country in the world to enact such laws in 2012.
They also set out proposed punishments for manufacturers who breached the guidelines such as unlimited fines and jail terms.
Britain's opposition Labour party and health campaigners have accused the coalition government of being too slow to bring forward legislation. The government has said it has enough time to legislate before a national election next May but has said it has yet to take a final decision on whether to go ahead.
If it does, the move could make Britain the second country in the world and the first in Europe to introduce mandatory plain cigarette packets. Ireland is planning a similar ban.
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