Paulina Quintao – Health Ministry Department of Non-infectious Diseases chief Dr Herculano Seixas dos Santos says consultation on draft tobacco control legislation is complete and the laws will be submitted to the Council of Ministers for consideration before progressing to Parliament for debate.

The laws regulate the circulation of tobacco products in Timor-Leste and will place price controls on their sale. They also put regulations on tobacco advertising. Dr dos Santos said smoking in prohibited places could earn offenders a $50 fine.

He said the laws were to counteract a trend of rising rates of tobacco related diseases including hypertension and cancer. World Health Organization (WHO) representative Dr Jorge Mario Luna said the regulations were important to ensure Timor-Leste abided by its responsibilities under WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

"This law is important to control the circulation of tobacco in the country and to ban people from smoking in public spaces; including also tobacco advertising." He said he hoped Parliament would prioritize the laws.

Member of Parliament Eladio Faculto said the laws were welcomed, particularly those which would net the government greater taxation revenue from the sale of cigarettes.

"I think it's very important the regulations raise the price of cigarettes because they are cheap and easy for children to get," he said. He called for the price to be increased to between $10 and $50 per packet.

Source: http://www.thediliweekly.com/en/news/news/13074-draft-tobacco-laws-complete