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** 16 February 2023
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** UK
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** Sniffer dogs find 12,000 illegal cigarettes in Walsall shop raids (#1)
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** International
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** Australia: Queensland to make it easier to end community title schemes (#2)
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** Parliamentary Activity
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** Parliamentary Questions (#3)
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** UK
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** Sniffer dogs find 12,000 illegal cigarettes in Walsall shop raids
Sniffer dogs found more than 12,000 illegal cigarettes, 2kg of hand rolling tobacco and 76 disposable vapes in raids on Walsall shops.
Walsall Trading Standards, West Midlands Police and a specialist search dog team, swooped on local shops and a storage unit during the raid yesterday, 14 February. It took place under Operation CeCe, which is a National Trading Standards initiative in partnership with HMRC to tackle illegal tobacco.
Two sniffer dogs, Cooper and Bran, assisted the team and identified two sophisticated concealments which were held closed using an electromagnet.
Councillor Garry Perry, portfolio holder for resilient communities, said: “Allowing this sort of crime to go on in Walsall is simply not an option and I want to thank the Trading Standards team, West Midlands Police and of course Cooper and Bran, for their hard work to seize these products and get them off our streets.”
Source: Birmingham Live, 16 February 2023
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Read Here ([link removed])
** International
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** Australia: Queensland to make it easier to end community title schemes
Queensland will allow community title schemes to be sold or redeveloped with the approval of 75% of owners, under proposed state laws. The laws would also allow corporate bodies to ban smoking in outdoor and communal areas of community title schemes, and tow away vehicles preventing access or causing a hazard.
Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman says the change from the current rule of all owners approving terminations was called for by participants at the government's housing summit last year.
She says the draft legislation, which will be consulted on in the coming months, will also allow a dissenting owner to oppose terminations in the District Court.
Source: Daily Mail, 16 February 2023
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** Parliamentary Activity
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** Parliamentary Questions
PQ1 & 2: Electronic Cigarettes: Regulation
Asked by Adam Afriyie, Conservative, Windsor Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2023 to Question 129765 on Electronic Cigarettes: Regulation, whether he has had discussions with Trading Standards Authorities on e-cigarette manufacturer Elf Bar overfilling e-cigarette devices.
Answered by Neil O'Brien, Minister for Primary Care and Public Health
The Department was recently made aware of possible breaches of our vaping (e-cigarettes) regulations related to disposable vapes exceeding the restrictions on tank capacity. We are working closely with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to investigate the matter further and we have discussed this with Trading Standards Authorities.
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Source: Hansard, 14 February 2023
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Read full transcript ([link removed] )
** Asked by Adam Afriyie, Conservative, Windsor Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will bring forward changes to the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 to increase penalties on manufacturers found to be in breach of those regulations.
Answered by Neil O'Brien, Minister for Primary Care and Public Health
There are no current plans to increase the penalties beyond those set out in regulation 51 of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016.
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Source: Hansard, 14 February 2023
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Read full transcript ([link removed] )
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