Price of cigarettes may double to Dh14

Law could raise the cost of tobacco as part of a recent anti-smoking drive across UAE.

ABU DHABI // The price of a packet of 20 cigarettes should double to about Dh14, the Ministry of Health (MoH) has proposed, to help get people to ditch the habit. The price increase is just one of a raft of anti-smoking restrictions being considered as part of a new law that will ban smoking in some public and private locations, outlaw tobacco advertising and require more detailed warnings on cigarette packets.

Some details of the legislation were announced this week, but officials were unable to clarify when the changes would take effect. Dr Wedad al Maidour, the head of the MoH tobacco control team, said: "We would like to increase the cost, but this is not possible through increases in the import tax," she said. "We can, however, raise the cost through increases in different taxes. "In the first stage we would aim to double the price of a packet of cigarettes. We would also increase the price regularly, maybe every five years."

She said studies in other countries have shown price increases help deter smoking, especially among teenagers and the money could be used to treat people who suffer from smoking-related illnesses. Currently, tobacco products have warnings in Arabic and English reminding people that smoking is the main cause of cancer and lung, heart and artery disease. These will be replaced by more graphic warnings, which are expected to cover half the area of the packet and may include images designed to discourage smoking.

The new law, which will forbid smoking on public transport or in enclosed public spaces, will be enforced by police and municipal inspectors. Cafes and restaurants located in residential areas will be given two years to relocate or implement the ban. It will also be illegal to sell cigarettes to people under 18, or to smoke in a car in which there is a child under 12. People who break the law will face fines of up to Dh1 million (US$272,000) and jail sentences of more than two years.

Doctors welcomed the ban. "I think this is a hugely positive step, particularly the idea to ban smoking in cars with children," said Dr Jon Craig, from the American Hospital in Dubai. "It is absolutely criminal that people do that with their own children in their cars. Dr Amira Elsayed, a consultant family physician at the Mushrif Clinic in Abu Dhabi, said: "I think this can only help improve the health of people in the UAE. Second-hand smoking is a serious threat to people's health."