The Italian Tobacconist Federation: Illiterate Lobbyists at Work

La voce del tabaccaio - copertina numero 16 - aprile 2012

La voce del tabaccaio (The Tobacconists’’ Voice) - no. 16 - April 2012

According to the European Union, the increase of cigarette prices has to be the result of greater fiscal pressure; it must not be the result of the manufacturers’ decisions to hike prices to earn higher profits, because this is a swindle that damages the citizen.

But the Italian Tobacconists Federation - Federazione Italiana Tabaccai –, sponsored by Philip Morris, continues to repeat its blatant disinformation aimed at safeguarding the profits of the multinationals, totally without respect for its members. This pseudo-federation is trying to explain to tobacconists that it is good that the swindle continues and that cigarette prices continue to rise whenever Philip Morris decides it, and that it is not a good if the State earns the money by raising taxes. Read more »

The TAR of Lazio, Yesmoke Wins: Away with the “Minimum Tax”

Bandiera della Yesmoke al ReichstagThe hearing was held on the 21st of March; the sentence was published on the 5th of April: the II Section of the TAR, the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio has upheld the appeal of Yesmoke. The Italian cigarette market has been definitively liberalized with the cancellation of D.L. 94, the so-called «Tassa Minima». This “Minimum Tax” had been contrived to get around the ruling of the European Court of Justice, which on June 24th 2010 had abolished the “Prezzo Minimo”, “Minimum Price” of cigarettes. Read more »

2012: Tax Revenues at a Dead-End?

Strada Senza UscitaThe latest issue of "Tobacco Observatory", published by the REF - Ricerche Economia Finanza, predicts that "The path to achieving the revenue objectives in 2012 promises to be difficult".

But the REF does not explain why there is this difficulty, nor does it indicate the logical solution. This is because the "Cigarette Price Swindle," which we have been denouncing for years and which has led the Italian Treasury into a dead end, enriches the REF’s official sponsor, British American Tobacco Italia. Read more »

Lecce: Globalization to Avoid Paying Taxes

BAT workers protest

November 2010: BAT workers against the shutdown of manufacturing

British American Tobacco decided to “delocalize” its production of MS cigarettes from Lecce in southern Italy to Germany even though the Italian plant was making millions in profits, and in the last two years the cigarettes produced climbed from nine to thirteen million tons. Why was the plant dismantled? The explanation is for “fiscal” reasons: if you manufacture abroad you don’t pay Italian taxes, and in fact, you don’t pay them anywhere. Read more »

The Cigarette Swindle – a Test for Monti

Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

Murales at the Yesmoke factory in Settimo Torinese

Since the beginning of the 1990s, the Italian politicians who have succeeded one another have always worked hand in hand with the AAMS opposing increases of tax pressure on cigarettes i.e. the rate of excise duties, opting for tariff maneuvers that have protected the profits of the giant foreign manufacturers. Our politicians have stolen money from the collectivity to give it away to foreign companies, who in exchange said “Bravo”. But now that the Monti Government has arrived, will it all change? Read more »

Cigarettes: New Government; Same Old Swindle

Santa Rosalia liberaci dal pizzo!Thanks to the “Mille Proroghe” (thousand extensions) decree, Italy’s new Monti Government will earn an additional 15 million euro from tobacco; however, Italian smokers will have to pay out almost 20 million. This is because four and a half are the additional “pizzo” – swindle money – that will go to Philip Morris, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco. In fact, the decree plans for an increase of the tax revenue from cigarettes, but not an increase in the tax pressure, which would call for raising the excise aliquot, and this would not be appreciated by Big Tobacco.

All this means that when cigarette costs rise, it is the “cartel” of the three multinationals that raise the prices; it is not the State that decides to increase the taxes. It’s true that when prices rise with this system, the cigarette makers take in more and the State, too, earns more. The problem is that in normal countries, including the countries of the third world, the State receives the entire amount. Read more »

Cigarette Taxes – The Swindle Continues

Ass-kissers

The price swindle, and the tax dodging of the manufacturers, does serious damage to the Italian people

The Government, not intervening on the excise on cigarettes, blocked since 2004 at 58.5% in Italy whereas in France it has been raised to 64%, confirms  it has the interests of the  tobacco multinationals as a priority. Since 2004 the price of cigarettes has climbed constantly, but delivering the blow, ten cents at a time, is not the State with its taxes, as everyone believes, but a "cartel" that holds 99% of the Italian market; it is made up of Philip Morris, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco. The interests of these 3 companies seem to be untouchable. Read more »

The Tax Evasion of Big Tobacco in Italy – Balances Attached

Parassita della societàThe tobacco market of the Italian boot is the richest in Europe. Last year cigarette manufacturers divided up a turnover of 2 billion 800 million euro... But how much tax do you think they paid on it?

Today in Italy, 99% of the brands sold belong to three foreign companies that have transferred all of their production abroad and, with various accounting tricks, they no longer pay taxes in Italy.

Philip Morris Italia S.r.l. – According to the latest balance, from a turnover of 1 billion and 463 million euro, Philip Morris declared only 22 million 515 thousand euro of profits. How did they do this? Read more »

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