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Italiano The Minimum Price Sentence: Yesmoke Heads for Victory
The TAR (Regional Administrative Court) of Lazio did not reject Yesmoke’s request for the cancellation of the AAMS decree on the minimum price of cigarettes, and it postponed the case. Now it is up to the government, and it hasn’t much time to make its move.
The abolition of the minimum price of cigarettes is coming closer and closer. In fact, the European Court of Justice’s suit against Italy is about to close earlier than expected and to avoid the conviction and sanctions of the European Union, Italy has no choice but to comply.
The TAR, besides not rejecting Yesmoke’s petition, did not send the case to the European Court of Justice, but postponed the trial, understandably, waiting for the State to act and eliminate the minimum price. This would allow Italy to avoid the condemnation and sanctions of the European Union, which had started a violation procedure against Italy.
With reference to the European violation procedure, the TAR underlines in its sentence that “as the written phase is terminated and as none of the parties have requested the oral phase, the controversy can, at this point, be considered virtually settled”. So the end of the road for the minimum price has definitely come.
They Managed to Hold on until the Last
The TAR cancelled the provision that increased the minimum price on the 28th of January of last year, but the AAMS managed, in a month, to restore everything as it had been before, appealing to the Council of State (Consiglio di Stato).
In the next hearing of May 12th, an agreement between lawyers, unknown to Yesmoke, allowed the minimum price to live six and a half more months, putting everything off until November 25th.
This victory, then, ended up coinciding with the end of the line for the minimum price.
The Minimum Price is out, Bring in the Taxes
A reduction in cigarette prices would cause an outburst of heated discussions in the press. To avoid this, the minimum price must be offset by an increase of the excise. This will prevent cigarette prices from going down, and the market will reward the companies, which, in spite of the tax increase, do not raise their prices and are willing to earn less.
The winners will not be the companies that lower their prices the most, but those who raise them the least. Moreover, the State can increase cigarette prices by raising taxes, thus increasing its revenue, while the manufacturers will have to compete with each other by reducing their profits.
This is what the European Union has instructed and what Yesmoke has always said: “Less money to Philip Morris and more money to the State”. And if this were not enough, this way the public health will continue to be safeguarded.
Yesmoke the Injured Party
The sentence of the TAR starts up an indemnification procedure for damages in Yesmoke’s favor, that might be settled much sooner than expected.
So, after giving away billions to the cartel of cigarette manufacturers, the State will pay damage compensation to Yesmoke.
Who cares? Everything can be done with public money, that is, with the money of others.
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