On top of further raising the excise taxes on tobacco and alcohol products, the Department of Finance is also seeking to stop the sale of cigarettes per stick as well as the use of e-cigarettes under its proposed tax reform package “2 plus.” Documents obtained by the Inquirer showed that under the proposed amendments to the tobacco excise tax regime folded into package 2 plus, the DOF wanted to “prohibit the importation and sale of e-cigarettes.” The DOF also wanted to ban the sale of cigarettes per stick while at the same time including a provision on plain packaging, citing that it was “one of the best tobacco control practices in the world.” Read more: More taxes on ‘sin products’ eyed
The DOF would earn more if they were to TAX the Children born here,reducing the Population growth is the way forward, seems they still can't get their priorities right
I don't understand why they are banning "e-cigarettes". Nicotine content can be zero and vegetable glycerin/propylene glycol have been used for nearly half a century with plenty of studies showing they do not lead to cancer.
I wondered about that as well - but the jury is still out on the long-term safety of 'e-cigs'. Some products do contain nicotine and may cause addiction in non-smokers. Also, there is concern that other methods of stopping smoking may be preferable but that smokers will not try them whilst 'e-cigs' are available. But I think perhaps best to allow the use of 'e-cigs' until a full process of helping people stop smoking exists within the Philippines (maybe next century?) as it seems they are less of an evil than tobacco products.
