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EU TO INCREASE CIGARETTE AND TOBACCO EXCISES

The European Union Council of Ministers, the bloc’s principal decision-making body, has adopted a directive updating EU rules on the structure and rates of excise duties on cigarettes and other tobacco products

"The directive is intended to ensure a higher level of public health protection by raising minimum excise duties on cigarettes, while bringing the minimum rates for fine-cut tobacco gradually into line with those for cigarettes," a media statement said.