A new report, commissioned by JTI Ireland, claims that the Department of Health rushed numerous EU and government guidelines for plain packaging legislation. The report detailed that the conduct of the Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) was so late in the decision making policy process that important aspects of plain packaging were not considered.
It said that the cost-benefit analysis and long term health benefits were amongst the matters not discussed about the legislation. The report found that parties were just given two weeks to respond to public consultation, compared to 12 weeks considered best practice by the EU. It also found the Department of Health only consulted with a minimal number of stakeholders, just 15.
New Zealand, a country with a comparable population to Ireland, engaged with almost 300 stakeholders when considering similar legislation. JTI Ireland General Manger Igor Dzaja said: “There were repeated calls for the Department to conduct and publish a RIA on the plain packaging proposals. Its absence meant that the Government’s decision to publish a bill […] took place in the absence of fundamental information”. The report was carried out by EPS Consulting.
© 2014 - Checkout Magazine by Robert Moloney.
