Farage says cigarette plain packaging 'utterly balmy'

[Inkanta]

Can't help but like how he tells it! Don't like his policies but style is refreshing.

[claig]

Agree, he is straight-talking, no spin

[KatoPotato]

Like tropical balmy?

[rideyourbike]

Balmy or barmy?!!

[stargirl1701]

Barmy?

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

Well they've got them in Australia already and it's quite warm there.

[TeenageMutantNinjaTurtle]

Oooh France announced yesterday they're doing plain packaging and they get quite nice weather too.

[Inkanta]

Barmy!

[Comito]

Much as I hate to agree with Farage on anything, I do on this occasion. No-one, not even kids, buys cigarettes because of the pattern on the box. If the government were really that bothered about smoking they would ban it entirely but they never will because they can make too much money in taxes from it and it would be a hugely unpopular move.

Proposing plain boxes is cynical, pointless and smacks of being seen to do something.

[Mostlyjustaluker]

If the packaging makes no difference why did the tobacco industry not want plain package?

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

Depending on who you listen to, in Australia it's either a highly successful anti-smoking measure or has caused massive problems with counterfeiting. When I was a kid we used to buy fags 2 at a time in a small paper bag. The bag didn't have giant pictures of diseases on it though so that bit's different.

I'm with him on the ecigs. I just wish they weren't such a bunch of racist disablist arseholes - and that they had actually turned up for the EU TPD vote. I thought we had finally found a use for them but no

[Bunbaker]

"No-one, not even kids, buys cigarettes because of the pattern on the box."

I agree. Although when I was in Morrisons, queueing at the same counter where cigarettes are sold, someone in front of me asked for some cigarettes without the "nasty pictures" on them.

I also agree that it will be a counterfeiter's dream to be able to sell cigarettes in plain packaging.

[BackOnlyBriefly]

It probably makes a slight difference if they don't have your brand and you look along the shelf and say "I'll have 20 of those".

But otherwise none whatsoever.

I think they should keep the big warnings on them. I nearly collected a full set of those. Like the old Brooke Bond Tea Cards

I think the warnings probably made a difference. After all if you tell a teenager that it's risky they don't do it... right? and of course everyone stopped drinking when they learned that could damage your liver.

[Icimoi]

Agree, he is straight-talking, no spin

Some might call it outright stupidity. Like when he moaned that the UKIP conference was being sabotaged by those pesky middle Eastern types and their unimportant wars.

[Comito]

I imagine the tobacco industry, like any other, wanted branded packaging. But I don't see it makes any difference. If you're a smoker you know what brand you want and if you're a prospective smoker then it's likely you'll ask for whatever brand of fags you pinched off your friend to try.

I just hate the thought of agreeing with Frag. It makes me shudder.

[meditrina]

Hate to sound like I'm defending him, but he didn't say "that the UKIP conference was being sabotaged by those pesky middle Eastern types and their unimportant wars".

He said that the Govt have known for a little while they would be recalling Parliament and could have done so for Thursday (this clashing with no party conference).

Unfortunately, he's right.