Fines for business entities amounting to $9m and as much as $200,000 for persons, the passage of the Tobacco Control Bill will leave little room for breaches.
The Bill was granted passage in the National Assembly Thursday evening after several hours of debate. Ahead of its passage though, Senior Minister of Public Health, Ms. Volda Lawrence, insisted that “This Bill must pass today.”
She was essentially able to make record as the only Minister with responsibility for Health to be able to successfully pilot the Bill through the National Assembly. This however was not done without some expected opposition from some among the parliamentary opposition.
Although the Bill has been passed by the Government majority, it will only become an active legislation when President David Granger assents to it.
The legislation is one that aims to outlaw smoking in public places and bring an end to glorified tobacco advertisements. Added to this, it is hoped that as law, it will restrict children under the age of 18 from smoking and they should also be prevented from procuring tobacco products.