New consultation on standardised tobacco packaging launched

The government has launched a new consultation seeking views on how new laws to introduce standardised tobacco packaging would work in practice.

Running for six weeks and closing on August 7th 2014, the consultation will gather opinions on proposed requirements for the packaging of cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco, such the colour of the new packets and the typefaces that would be allowed, as well as details of the appearance of individual cigarettes.

This follows the publication of an independent review led by Sir Cyril Chantler in April 2014, which concluded that the introduction of standardised packaging would be likely to have a positive impact on public health, particularly for children.

Specifically, it was noted that branded packaging plays a key role in encouraging young people to smoke, and that standardised packs would result in a "modest but important" reduction in smoking rates.

As such, the government is currently in favour of introducing these laws, but will only confirm its intentions after the current consultation is concluded.

Public health minister Jane Ellison said: "I urge anybody with any new evidence relating to the wider implications of introducing standardised packaging to contribute so their voice can be heard."