From the Economist:
The state-owned China National Tobacco Corporation controls the production and sale of all tobacco in China. That the government profits from puffing perhaps explains why it has taken so few anti-smoking measures since China signed the WHO’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in 2003. Packets carry only tiny written health warnings (with no graphic pictures), and taxes remain low. The company’s arguments echo those of tobacco firms elsewhere. It warns that cutting smoking will harm the economy, since tobacco taxes account for 7.5% of fiscal revenue at all levels of government (in Yunnan they account for about half the provincial tax take). Unlike elsewhere, China’s monopoly has a ministerial seat, which means it can shape legislation.
Until the state divorces itself from the tobacco industry it will be hard to campaign seriously against smoking. ...
Would public health campaigners support privatization and trade liberalization in the Chinese tobacco industry, in order to get tougher anti-smoking regulations enacted in China?
