Praise His Holy Name! Our prayers are being answered!



BANGKOK: -- The Finance Ministry will today ask the Cabinet to enforce even stricter regulations on the sale of alcohol and cigarettes. The new rules will make legal the current decree on liquor sales after midnight and prohibit the sale of cigarettes in educational institutions.



The new ministerial regulations will also prohibit the sale of cigarettes in religious places and venues where tobacco-sales licences were previously revoked, a source at Government House said.



The ministry wants alcohol sales for permit categories 3 and 4, which cover alcoholic drinks manufactured inside and outside the country, restricted from 5pm to midnight instead of 5pm to 2am. Also, liquor licences will not beissued to venues near schools or religious places.



Meanwhile, the National Committee for the Control of Tobacco Use ruled yesterday that the convenience-store chain 7-Eleven had violated the Tobacco Product Control Act 1992 by stacking packets of cigarettes in display cabinets above cash registers.



The cigarettes catch customers’ attention, revealing an intention to advertise, Disease Control Department deputy director-general Dr Narong Methapat said.



The Public Health Ministry has sent two warning letters to CP Seven Eleven Plc but would not send another. Instead, it will consult the Royal Thai Police next week to make arrests in Greater Bangkok and upcountry, Narong said.



If a store admitted to being guilty of breaking the law then it would face a Bt200,000 fine. Refusal to admit guilt would result in legal action. The ministry has been gathering evidence for a court battle, he said.



Narong said public health officials will inspect shops on a regular basis for cigarette displays and report infringements for legal action, adding that for chain stores the lawsuit would be filed against the headquarters and the branch.



Last week, the Council of State ruled that some cigarette displays, such as having packs of the same brand placed in open view to attract people’s attention, could be taken as a form of advertising.



--The Nation 2005-11-08

 

Does this mean from bars etc or just from shops such as 7/11.

The new liquor tariff is unlikely to reduce drinking like the government hopes it will, but instead prompt tipplers to switch to cheaper alternatives, says a Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) study. “The TDRI study shows that local consumers have shifted their alcoholic consumption towards white spirits and beer, which are not impacted by the new tax structure,” said Bundit Sornpaisarn, director of the Centre for Alcohol Studies.



The new tariff last month turned guzzlers away from local special-blend spirits and imported economy whiskies, Bundit told a seminar on “Taxation Strategy to Reduce Overall Alcoholic-Beverage and Contaminated-Liquor Consumption”, organised by Alternative Medicine magazine. Pricing is one of the most influential factors for consumer decision-making, in addition to a place to buy and packaging, he said.



Consumption of alcoholic beverages has tripled over the past 14 years. from 20.2 litres per head per year to Bt58 litres.



The Excise Department has introduced a mixed-taxation system. The ad valorem method partly taxes the cost of production, while the specific method taxes alcohol content, with the producer or importer paying whichever rate is higher.



Full story on www.nationmultimedia.com

Tougher laws on alcohol, cigarettes

Published on November 09, 2005



The Cabinet yesterday approved three Finance Ministry regulations covering the sale of alcoholic drinks and cigarettes, Deputy Government Spokesman Chalermchai Mahakitsiri said.



The first piece of legislation enshrines in law an existing decree on sale times for permit categories 3 and 4, which cover alcoholic drinks made in and outside Thailand. The new period shortens the time alcoholic drinks can be sold to 5pm to midnight, down from 5pm to 2am.



The second rule stipulates that licenses to sell alcohol will not be issued to venues that are within 500 metres of schools or religious places; or to venues that have previously had their licenses revoked, Chalermchai said.



The third rule covers tobacco-sales licenses, which can only be issued on condition that retailers not sell cigarettes to people under 18 years old.



www.thenationmultimedia.com



I wonder why it's come from the Finance Minister and not the Interior Minister?

homintern is on your IGNORE list.