CIGARETTES worth more than £7,500 have been stolen from a newsagents in Canute Place.
The burglars broke into Martin’s via the roof in the early hours of Thursday, November 19, and as well as stealing the cigarettes an amount of cash was also taken.
When the Guardian contacted Martin’s they were unavailable to comment on the incident.
Sgt Andy Preece, from Knutsford neighbourhood policing team, said: “The investigation is still on going but we are confident that we may get some where.
“We are waiting for CCTV from the shop and although the system was having problems we are hopeful that it has still been recorded.”
Nov 27, 2009
Price of beer soon to rise as govt re-imposes ad-valorem tax
Government is considering re-imposing ad-valorem tax on alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, as well as on tobacco products.This means the prices of these products could soon go up.
Excise duty on these products is fixed, but with the re-introduction of the ad-valorem tax, a percentage will be charged on the ex-factory price of each item.
This implies that the amount paid as tax could go up when the product price goes up.
Government says it is bringing back the ad-valorem tax because a study it carried out over a 10-year-period shows the State is losing money by not imposing specific taxes on these products.Although government is yet to come out with the percentage it intends to charge, businesses are already expressing displeasure over the new move.
Excise duty on these products is fixed, but with the re-introduction of the ad-valorem tax, a percentage will be charged on the ex-factory price of each item.
This implies that the amount paid as tax could go up when the product price goes up.
Government says it is bringing back the ad-valorem tax because a study it carried out over a 10-year-period shows the State is losing money by not imposing specific taxes on these products.Although government is yet to come out with the percentage it intends to charge, businesses are already expressing displeasure over the new move.
Nov 23, 2009
Map Togo to ban smoking in public
Togo is considering a bill to ban smoking in public. The Ministry of Health of the West African country said tobacco related deaths in the country has reached alarming proportions and it is about time it saves its citizens. Smoking prevalence in the tiny country is 31.3% and civil society organizations are helping to save the situation.
A representative of the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Sadjo-Hetsi Dzrevon said: “Tobacco has killed a lot of people in Togo that is why the ministry of health is concerned and working with NGOs to stop this dangerous trend”.
The National Alliance of Consumers and Environment of Togo said in a document: “Tobacco consumption is spreading more and more, especially among the youth. The tobacco industry is increasingly directing its harmful advertising toward young people by sponsoring youth oriented cultural activities. Even though the state has banned tobacco advertising in public and private media, the advertising still exists in many forms in Togo.”
At the moment there is an ongoing legislative process on tobacco control which is expected to culminate into a national legal document that will support the promotion and implementation of the framework convention on tobacco control.
“If these documents are adopted by the legislators it will strengthen existing structures on the ground and also provide a more reliable data on tobacco control in the country.
“Before now we have no consistent data on Tobacco control, with this situational analysis document, we now have a document that we can rely on, we now have a guide that will help us to work on policies. The document is very important for stakeholders working on tobacco control issues in Togo,” Dr. told AfricaNews reporter in Lome.He said: “At the ministry of health we are happy that there is now a reference document that will guide legislation and necessary action on tobacco control.”
A representative of the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Sadjo-Hetsi Dzrevon said: “Tobacco has killed a lot of people in Togo that is why the ministry of health is concerned and working with NGOs to stop this dangerous trend”.
The National Alliance of Consumers and Environment of Togo said in a document: “Tobacco consumption is spreading more and more, especially among the youth. The tobacco industry is increasingly directing its harmful advertising toward young people by sponsoring youth oriented cultural activities. Even though the state has banned tobacco advertising in public and private media, the advertising still exists in many forms in Togo.”
At the moment there is an ongoing legislative process on tobacco control which is expected to culminate into a national legal document that will support the promotion and implementation of the framework convention on tobacco control.
“If these documents are adopted by the legislators it will strengthen existing structures on the ground and also provide a more reliable data on tobacco control in the country.
“Before now we have no consistent data on Tobacco control, with this situational analysis document, we now have a document that we can rely on, we now have a guide that will help us to work on policies. The document is very important for stakeholders working on tobacco control issues in Togo,” Dr. told AfricaNews reporter in Lome.He said: “At the ministry of health we are happy that there is now a reference document that will guide legislation and necessary action on tobacco control.”
Nov 20, 2009
Remember ‘blue seal’ cigarettes
A SWISS company is proposing to put in place a system where tax stamps will be affixed on every pack of cigarette and every bottle of liquor to raise more revenues for the government.
The company, SICPA, wants to make it appear affixing stamps on highly taxable goods is a fool-proof way of curbing smuggling and tax evasion by manufacturers. The reality is that it is selling a fraudulent bill of goods.
It’s only about 20 years now that cigarettes and liquor have been free of the green BIR stamp on every pack and bottle (imported liquor still carries the strips). The rationale for doing away with the strips was that they constituted additional cost to consumers and that it was far more simple to just monitor the withdrawals of cigarettes and alcohol products from the manufacturing plants.
Also, tax strips proved to be ineffective in curbing smuggling which the system originally was meant to combat. Remember "blue seal" cigarettes? The term was derived from the color of the manufacturers’ stamps at the top of the pack. Over the manufacturers’ strips, BIR stamps were supposed to be laid to show tax had been paid.
SICPA claims its stamps cannot be counterfeited. In this land of fake peso bills, diplomas, passports and even visas, does SICPA really want us to believe its stamps could not be faked? Even a reasonable facsimile would do as in the previous experience with BIR stamps. The BIR stamps, it will be recalled, were also printed in security paper with watermark. A close look at the genuine BIR stamps and the fakes would show which was which. But to repeat, this did not discourage the smugglers.
But the biggest objection to the SICPA proposal is that it will raise prices by an estimated P1.50 a pack, a cost that will be passed on to consumers. Out of that P1.50, about P1 will go to the government and P0.50 to SICPA.
Given that kind of sharing, why does not the government simply increase the specific tax on cigarettes across-the-board by P1 a pack? The government collects the same revenues. The consumer gets a P0.50 break.
The only loser would be SICPA and, presumably, its sponsors who are ramming the proposal down the throat of the BIR.
The company, SICPA, wants to make it appear affixing stamps on highly taxable goods is a fool-proof way of curbing smuggling and tax evasion by manufacturers. The reality is that it is selling a fraudulent bill of goods.
It’s only about 20 years now that cigarettes and liquor have been free of the green BIR stamp on every pack and bottle (imported liquor still carries the strips). The rationale for doing away with the strips was that they constituted additional cost to consumers and that it was far more simple to just monitor the withdrawals of cigarettes and alcohol products from the manufacturing plants.
Also, tax strips proved to be ineffective in curbing smuggling which the system originally was meant to combat. Remember "blue seal" cigarettes? The term was derived from the color of the manufacturers’ stamps at the top of the pack. Over the manufacturers’ strips, BIR stamps were supposed to be laid to show tax had been paid.
SICPA claims its stamps cannot be counterfeited. In this land of fake peso bills, diplomas, passports and even visas, does SICPA really want us to believe its stamps could not be faked? Even a reasonable facsimile would do as in the previous experience with BIR stamps. The BIR stamps, it will be recalled, were also printed in security paper with watermark. A close look at the genuine BIR stamps and the fakes would show which was which. But to repeat, this did not discourage the smugglers.
But the biggest objection to the SICPA proposal is that it will raise prices by an estimated P1.50 a pack, a cost that will be passed on to consumers. Out of that P1.50, about P1 will go to the government and P0.50 to SICPA.
Given that kind of sharing, why does not the government simply increase the specific tax on cigarettes across-the-board by P1 a pack? The government collects the same revenues. The consumer gets a P0.50 break.
The only loser would be SICPA and, presumably, its sponsors who are ramming the proposal down the throat of the BIR.
Nov 17, 2009
Fatal fire blamed on cigarettes
A 50-year-old man has died after an early morning house fire in Stranraer in the south west of Scotland.
The blaze in the ground floor bedsit broke out at about 0530 GMT in Corsewall Crescent.
Dumfries and Galloway firefighters required breathing apparatus and managed to recover a man from the house, but he failed to survive.
Investigators later blamed the fire on discarded smoking materials which lit combustible materials in the house.
The blaze in the ground floor bedsit broke out at about 0530 GMT in Corsewall Crescent.
Dumfries and Galloway firefighters required breathing apparatus and managed to recover a man from the house, but he failed to survive.
Investigators later blamed the fire on discarded smoking materials which lit combustible materials in the house.
Nov 13, 2009
Tobacco Warehouse Has Second Fire In 2 Days
- Fire officials along with the Kentucky State Police are investigating two fires that happened over the weekend in Maysville.
The fires took place on Friday evening and Sunday afternoon at a former tobacco warehouse on Elizabeth Street.
The Maysville Fire Department, Lewisburg Volunteer Fire Department and Maysville-Washington volunteer fire department were dispatched to both fires.
When firecrews arrived at the scene they discovered heavy smoke coming from the building.
A Maysville firefighter says Sunday's fire started in the basement of the building.
Fire chief, Eric Bach says he would consider the fires suspicious, but they are still determining if it was arson. An arson investigator and state police officials are trying to determine the cause of the blazes.
There were no reports of injuries.
The fires took place on Friday evening and Sunday afternoon at a former tobacco warehouse on Elizabeth Street.
The Maysville Fire Department, Lewisburg Volunteer Fire Department and Maysville-Washington volunteer fire department were dispatched to both fires.
When firecrews arrived at the scene they discovered heavy smoke coming from the building.
A Maysville firefighter says Sunday's fire started in the basement of the building.
Fire chief, Eric Bach says he would consider the fires suspicious, but they are still determining if it was arson. An arson investigator and state police officials are trying to determine the cause of the blazes.
There were no reports of injuries.
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