News In Brief Tobacco Industry Interference

Top Cancer Researcher Fails to Disclose Corporate Financial Ties in Major Research Journals
September 20, 2018

By: Charles Ornstein and Katie Thomas The New York Times – This article was reported and written in a collaboration with ProPublica, the nonprofit investigative journalism organization. One of the world’s top breast cancer doctors failed to disclose millions of dollars in payments [...]

Country Policies/ Practices News In Brief

Saudi Arabia tells WTO it plans to adopt plain tobacco packaging
September 20, 2018

By: Tom Miles; editing by David Stamp Reuters – Saudi Arabia notified the World Trade Organization on Wednesday that it plans to adopt plain packaging of tobacco products, a public health measure strongly opposed by major tobacco firms. The move by Saudi [...]

Media Press Releases/ Statements News In Brief

GGTC Selected for Bloomberg Philanthropies STOP Grant
August 25, 2018

Source: Bloomberg Philanthropies Bloomberg Philanthropies selects Global Centre for Good Governance in Tobacco Control and two key partners to lead STOP: the Global Tobacco Industry Watchdog Bloomberg Philanthropies’ public health team  works with partners in low- and middle-income countries to reduce [...]

News In Brief Tobacco Industry Interference

Big Tobacco’s Global Reach on Social Media
August 24, 2018

Source: New York Times The tobacco industry says it no longer tries to hook new generations of smokers. So what’s behind the legions of beautiful young people in smoking, vaping and partying posts with the same hashtags? It’s been years since [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Combat against devastating effects of tobacco can only be won ‘if the UN stands united’ – UN health official
August 24, 2018

Source: United Nations United Nations agencies must join forces at the policy level and refuse interference from tobacco companies in their programmes so the destructive impact of tobacco can be effectively addressed and lives can be saved, the head of [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Professionals co-opted to back tobacco giants
August 22, 2018

19 August 2018: Source: Daily Maverick By Masutane Modjadji and Kerry Cullinan The tobacco industry is spending vast sums of money to fight government’s attempts to tighten smoking laws and regulate electronic cigarettes – and it has managed to recruit [...]

News In Brief Tobacco Industry Interference

Tobacco Industry Interference
August 18, 2018

Tobacco Industry Interference Year Region/ Country Topic Headline News Souce 2017 Australia Tobacco executive (of ATA International) donations to Labor Party Bill Shorten seeks explanation for reported $400,000 donations from tobacco boss The Guardian 2017 Congo, Iran, Iraq, Kenya, Somalia, [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Here Are The Leaders Of STOP: Bloomberg’s $20 Million Tobacco Watchdog
August 16, 2018

14 August 2018: Source: Forbes By: Bruce Y. Lee STOP has just started and aims to bring new meaning to the phrase “asking for a light,” when it comes to smoking. STOP is an acronym for a new $20 million Bloomberg Philanthropies initiative [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Bloomberg targets Big Tobacco’s ‘underhanded tactics’
August 16, 2018

14 August 2018: Source: APF Billionaire former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg on Tuesday gave a trio of anti-tobacco crusaders $20 million to up their game against an industry aggressively marketing its deadly wares worldwide, especially in developing countries. The [...]

Media Press Releases/ Statements News In Brief

Tobacco watchdog will provide industry monitoring and awareness
August 14, 2018

14 August 2018: Source: Bloomberg The Stopping Tobacco Organizations and Products (STOP) competition was launched by Bloomberg Philanthropies at the World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Cape Town, South Africa. Prospective applicants could include up to three organizations as partners, but [...]

Declarations RESOURCES

17th World Conference on Tobacco or Health Declarations announced at conference close
August 9, 2018

Source: 17th World Conference On Tobacco Or Health Dr Harry Lando, Chair of the WCTOH Organizing Committee, announced eleven declarations of the 17th World Conference on Tobacco or Health. Thanking delegates, organizers and speakers for their contribution to the success of [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Government orders Phillip Morris to stop advertising “healthier” tobacco products or face legal action
July 20, 2018

18 July 2018: Source: The Telegraph he Government will take one of the world’s largest tobacco firms to court unless it stops illegally targeting UK consumers with tobacco adverts, a Minister has said. Yesterday the Department of Health sent a [...]

News Articles News In Brief

World’s biggest tobacco firm under fire over ‘disgraceful’ PR stunt
July 20, 2018

19 July 2018: Source: The Guardian NHS staff told to reject offer by makers of Marlboro cigarettes to help them quit smoking The world’s biggest tobacco firm has been accused of staging “a disgraceful PR stunt” by offering to help [...]

News Articles News In Brief

WTO Tobacco Ruling Opens Door to New Plain-Packaging Laws
July 1, 2018

Source: Bloomberg By: Bryce Baschuk The World Trade Organization upheld Australia’s right to require cigarettes to be sold in plain packs without any logos in a landmark case that could usher in a new wave of global tobacco restrictions. A panel [...]

News Articles News In Brief

The Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products is live!
June 30, 2018

Source: World Health Organization Press release 28 JUNE 2018 | GENEVA – Yesterday, 27 June 2018, the conditions for the entry into force of the first legally binding instrument adopted under the WHO FCTC were met, paving the way to eliminate [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Cabo Verde had released a brochure on civil servants’ responsibilities under Article 5.3
June 7, 2018

Source: Minsaude Cabo Verde had released a brochure (Portuguese) to alert civil servants about their responsibilities under Article 5.3. The brochure refers to the eight principles of Article 5.3 and the effects of tobacco use on society. It highlights how the [...]

Country Policies/ Practices News In Brief

Poland considers the Philip Morris International (PMI) funded Foundation for a Smoke-Free World as being part of the tobacco industry
February 13, 2018

13 February 2018: The Ministry of Health considers the Philip Morris International (PMI) funded Foundation for Smoke-Free World as being part of the tobacco industry. The MOH has sent a letter, dated 9 January 2018, to the Chancellor, Vice-Rectors and Deans of all medical schools [...]

Media Press Releases/ Statements News In Brief

WCTOH Statement on PMI’s Foundation for a Smoke-free World
October 21, 2017

Source: WCTOH 20 October 2017: Organisers of the 17th World Conference on Tobacco or Health make an explicit policy statement on conference participants: “Anyone affiliated with Philip Morris International’s Foundation for a Smoke-free World is ineligible to attend the 17th World [...]

Media Press Releases/ Statements News In Brief

WHO Statement on the PMI Foundation
October 13, 2017

28 September 2017: Source: World Health Organization The World Health Organization issued a statement on the new Philip Morris new ‘Foundation for a Smoke-free World’ stating, The UN General Assembly has recognized a “fundamental conflict of interest between the tobacco industry [...]

Media Press Releases/ Statements News In Brief

WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Secretariat’s statement on the launch of the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World
September 22, 2017

19 Sep 2017: Source: World Health Organization The Convention Secretariat for the WHO FCTC (CSF) has issued a statement denouncing Philip Morris International’s new billion dollar ‘Foundation for a Smoke-free World’, that it is an industry funded activity in breach of the WHO FCTC. [...]

Global Practices News In Brief

United Nation Global Compact Integrity Policy Update
September 14, 2017

12 September 2017: Source: United Nations Global Compact Following a comprehensive integrity review as part of its new 2030 strategy and vision, the United Nations Global Compact has enhanced its policies and procedures to more closely align with the broader [...]

Country Policies/ Practices CSR News In Brief

Thailand became the first country in Asia to ban tobacco industry related corporate social responsibility (CSR)
August 23, 2017

24 August 2017: Source: Department of Disease Control, Bureau of Tobacco Control, Thailand In July, Thailand became the first country in Asia to implement a ban on tobacco industry related corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. See law here. This is an important achievement [...]

News Tobacco Industry Interference

Inside Philip Morris’ campaign to subvert the global anti-smoking treaty
August 8, 2017

13 July 2017: Source: Reuters By: ADITYA KALRA, PARITOSH BANSAL, DUFF WILSON and TOM LASSETER The world’s largest publicly traded tobacco company is deploying its vast resources against international efforts to reduce smoking. Internal documents uncovered by Reuters reveal details of the secret operation. [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Danish Institute for Human Rights tells PMI: “Stop production & marketing of tobacco
May 29, 2017

23 May 2017: Source: Danish Institute for Human Rights The Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR), a quasi-state body, was asked by Philip Morris International (PMI) last year to conduct a human rights assessment on it. The DIHR has completed the [...]

News Articles News In Brief

ITIC cuts ties with Big Tobacco
May 25, 2017

19 May 2017: Source: Financial Times The International Tax and Investment Center (ITIC) has reportedly cut its ties with the transnational tobacco companies. According to a Financial Times report on 19 May, ITIC had asked tobacco representatives to resign from [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Philippines is the first Asian country to require its foreign missions to apply FCTC Article 5.3
May 11, 2017

11 May 2017: Source: Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs: Philippines is the first Asian country to require its foreign missions to apply FCTC Article 5.3. Offices, Foreign Service Posts and Regional Consular Offices are instructed to [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Convention Secretariat to join ILO in an initiative to combat child labour in tobacco farms
March 10, 2017

8 March 2017: Source: World Health Organization The executive body of the International Labour Organization (ILO) will meet on 15 March and discuss its relationship with the tobacco industry. This item has been included on the agenda with a view [...]

Country Policies/ Practices News In Brief

Civil Service Commission Clarification
January 9, 2017

5 January 2017: Source: Business Mirror THIS refers to the article “Groups hit Civil Service official for pushing ban on e-cigarettes” by Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco published on print and online versions of the BusinessMirror on November 21, 2016. As a response to the [...]

New Products News In Brief

E-cig lobby undermines international decision to protect public health
December 8, 2016

5 December 2016: Source: TobaccoWatch Four countries in the ASEAN region, namely Brunei, Cambodia Singapore and Thailand, have banned e-cigarettes, officially known as electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS). The recent seventh session of the FCTC Conference of the Parties (COP7) [...]

News Articles News In Brief

Every tobacco death is an avoidable tragedy. The epidemic must stop here: Margaret Chan
November 7, 2016

6 November 2016: Source: The Guardian By: Margaret Chan As India prepares to host a key global anti-tobacco conference, the world must seize the chance to end a scourge that claims 6m lives a year Tobacco use, the leading cause of [...]