Activities of Paul MURPHY related to 2012/0366(COD)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning the manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco and related products
Amendments (13)
Amendment 5 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) In other areas there are still substantial differences between the Member States’ laws, regulations and administrative provisions on the manufacture, presentation, and sale of tobacco and related products which impede the functioning of the internal market. In the light of scientific, market and international developments these discrepancies are expected to increase. This applies in particular to nicotine containing products, herbal products for smoking, ingredients and emissions, certain aspects of labelling and packaging and the cross-border distance saleand internet sales of tobacco products and point of sale displays of tobacco products.
Amendment 10 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 12 a (new)
Recital 12 a (new)
(12a) Child labour is still a persisting feature of tobacco production. The increasing awareness of consumers about health and human rights problems related to production and processing methods equally require an improved tracking, tracing and reporting system with a view to identify the origin and the conditions under which tobacco was harvested and to give consumers the choice to choose tobacco produced without child labour and children exposed to toxic dangers;
Amendment 12 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) The current use of different reporting formats makes it difficult for manufacturers and importers to fulfil their reporting obligations and burdensome for the Member States and the Commission to compare, analyse and draw conclusions from the information received. In this light there should be a common mandatory format for the reporting of production and processing methods as well as ingredients and emissions. The greatest possible transparency of product information should be ensured for the general public, while ensuring that appropriate account is taken of the commercial and intellectual property rights of the manufacturers of tobacco products.
Amendment 20 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 18
Recital 18
Amendment 28 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 24
Recital 24
(24) Tobacco products for smoking, other than cigarettes and roll-your-own tobacco products, which are mainly consumed by older consumers, should be granted an exemption from certain labelling requirements as long as there is no substantial change of circumstances in terms of sales volumes or consumption patterns in relation to young people. The labelling of these other tobacco products should follow specific rulesubject to the same labelling as all other tobacco products. The visibility of the health warnings on smokeless tobacco products needs to be ensured. Warnings should therefore be placed on the two main surfaces of smokeless tobacco product packaging.
Amendment 34 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 30
Recital 30
(30) Cross-border distanceInternet sales of tobacco facilitate access to tobacco products of young people and risk to undermine compliance with the requirements provided for by tobacco control legislation and in particular by this Directive. Common rules on a notification system are necessary to ensure that this Directive achieves its full potential. The provision on notification of cross-border distance sales of tobacco in this Directive should apply notwithstanding the notification procedure set out in Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal aspects of information society services, and should therefore be prohibited, in line with the implementing Guidelines of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), the EU is a party to. Business to consumer distance sale of tobacco products is further regulated by Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and the Council of 20 May 1997 on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts, which will be replaced by Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 25 October 2011 on consumer rights, as of 13 June 2014.41
Amendment 44 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 41
Recital 41
(41) Member States should remain free to maintain or introduce national legislations applying to all products alike for aspects falling outside the scope of this Directive, provided they are compatible with the Treaty and do not jeopardise the full application of this Directive. Accordingly, Member States cshould, for instance, maintain or introduce provisions providing standardisation of packaging of tobacco products as provided that those provissions aiming at health protections are compatible with the Treaty, with WTO obligations and do not affect the full application of this Directive. A prior notification is required for technical regulations pursuant to Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations and on rules on Information Society services44.
Amendment 47 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 41 a (new)
Recital 41 a (new)
(41a) The provisions mentioned in the Directive are justified and consistent with intellectual property rights as enshrined in TRIPS, as the TRIPS aim, which is to guarantee distinction between brands and protect against undue use of trademarks, is maintained.
Amendment 52 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) the labelling and packaging of tobacco products including the health warningwarnings concerning health of producers and direct and indirect consumers to appear on unit packets of tobacco products and any outside packaging as well as traceability and security features to ensure compliance with this Directive;
Amendment 55 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) cross-border distancethe prohibitions of internet sales of tobacco products;
Amendment 103 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 7 – paragraph 7 a (new)
Article 7 – paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Unit packages should also carry traceable information on the place of harvest of the tobacco used, with a view to identify whether it was produced on the basis of child labour.
Amendment 114 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 9 – paragraph 1 – point c
(c) cover 75 % of the external area of both the front and back surface of the unit packet and any outside packaging; Member States are, however, encouraged to proceed with plain packaging;
Amendment 173 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 14 – paragraph 2 – point a (new)
Article 14 – paragraph 2 – point a (new)
(a) the place of origin of the tobacco used; as well as health and human rights conditions under which it was harvested (in particular child labour rate);