Staff Reporter

ISLAMABAD: General Secretary and Director Operations of Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH) Sana Ullah Ghumman said that tobacco use is very harmful to health. An effective way to prevent from tobacco products is tax. Unfortunately, the tax has not increased by a single rupee in the last 5 years.

He said that on “National No Smoking Day ” the Social Policy and Development Center (SPDC) has developed a policy brief for Pakistan on “Impact of Cigarette Tax Policy in Pakistan, Assessed the Impact of Three Different Federal Excise Duty Rates in Fiscal Year 2021-22 in Policy Brief”. It was clarified that the share of excise tax in Pakistan at present is 42.6% for low cost packs and 59.8% for premium packs. Due to their affordability, the market share of low cost cigarettes is 92%. This policy note is considered in two ways, a 30% increase in Federal Excise Duty (FED) and a 40% increase in FED. If tobacco is increased by 30%, the number of smokers will decrease by 219,000.A 40% increase in the FED would reduce smoking by 377,000. In addition, an increase of 30% and 40%, respectively, would generate an additional revenue of Rs. 19 billion and Rs. 14 billion. Implementing these studies will help Pakistan improve its tobacco tax policies for the next financial year and beyond.

Sana Ullah Ghumman said that The Center for Social Policy and Development (SPDC) wrote another policy brief for Pakistan on the topic “Implications of Cigarette Tax Policy in Pakistan”. In which it was clarified that no change in tax has been made in Pakistan during the last five years, which reflects the contents of Finance Act 2021. This lack of action results in more affordable cigarettes, an additional 232,000 adult smokers and 256,000 future smokers, and 81,000 more deaths from smoking-attributable diseases. The researchers said that a 30% increase in the FED rate would significantly reduce cigarette consumption, raising Rs 29.7 billion in revenue. A 30% increase would result in a reduction in 220,000 adult smokers, and a reduction of 243,000 future smokers. 77,000 deaths due to smoking-related diseases will be saved.

He said that the forthcoming budget should recommend a 30% increase in the Fed rate to reduce the harmful effects of smoking, so that diseases can be eradicated and revenue can be significantly increased.