British American Tobacco

This report focuses on the functioning of British American Tobacco in Australia, the applicable laws and legislations, and the international treaties and conventions that impact the company.

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BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO
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British American Tobacco
Executive Summary
British American Tobacco is United Kingdom based multinational company, which functions
in tobacco industry including manufacturing of cigarette and tobacco. Its headquarter is
located in London, United Kingdom. It is the leading tobacco company in the world. British
American Tobacco is leading in tobacco industry in more than 50 countries and having its
operation in 180 countries. In Australia, the company is located in New South Wales. This
report will focus mainly on the functioning of the company, the applicable laws, which the
company have to follow, and the effect when they are not followed. This report will also
focus on the international treaties and convention which impact the working of the British
American Tobacco Company in Australia.
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British American Tobacco
Table of Contents
Executive Summary...................................................................................................................1
About British American Tobacco Company..............................................................................3
Applicable Laws and Legislations.............................................................................................3
International Treaties and Conventions.....................................................................................6
Bibliography...............................................................................................................................9
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About British American Tobacco Company
British American Tobacco Company was established in 1902 by the merger of Imperial
Tobacco Company of United Kingdom and American Tobacco Company of the United States
(Anon., 2019). British American Tobacco Company has strong market in tobacco industry. It
has wide market range and its products are consumed in more than 66 countries around the
globe. It has registered headquarters in London. It has more than 300 brands including
cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco and smokeless snuffs (Anon., 2019). In Australia, the
company operates in the name of British American Tobacco Australia and its headquarters is
in New South Wales. There are more than 400 active employees in Australia (Anon., 2019).
Global count of employees is more than 57,000 (Anon., 2019). British American Company is
second largest tobacco manufacturing organisation in the world.
Applicable Laws and Legislations
As British American Tobacco Company operates in tobacco industry so it is the duty of the
company to adhere the various laws which are applicable on the company-
Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act 1992- Initially known as Tobacco Products
Advertisements (Prohibition) Act 1989, it prohibits promotion of the tobacco in print and
broadcasting media directly (Anon., 2016). In 2007, the government of Australia distributed a
manual for the Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act that diagrams the required things under
the Act. The manual is intended to help individuals who are in business of selling of tobacco
items, those whose work includes distributing or broadcasting, and individuals who manage
the tobacco business. The Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act forces limitations on telecom
and distributing of tobacco ads. The preclusions spread in print media publicizing;
promotions as movies, recordings, TV and the web; promotion on tickets; promotion of
funding; the deal of anything that contains a tobacco commercial; and open air promoting on
bulletins or open transport. Under the said Act, tobacco can even now be sold by means of
post office based e-mail, the internet and at purposes of offer, anyway the Tobacco
Advertising Prohibition Act and regional enactment force limitations on the publicizing and
advancement of tobacco. British American Tobacco Company is the one of the highest
tobacco producers in tobacco industry so it is the duty of the company to strictly follow the
rules and regulations framed by the Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act.
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British American Tobacco
Tobacco and Other Smoking Products Act 1927- Initially it was known as Tobacco Act
1927, the act provide guidelines and rules for advertising and promotion of tobacco. The act
provides the requirements on the procedure of advertising and promotion of the tobacco
products. The Act expresses that it is crime if an individual shows or communicates a
smoking ad, and is careless about whether the ad is obvious or discernable from public place.
No endowments, rewards plans or esteem included special things can be related with the buy
of smoking items. A smoking item itself cannot be given away if this advances the clearance
of a smoking item. It is illicit to lead a challenge that advances smoking or advances a
smoking item. After the amendment in 2008, the Health Ministry of Australia has been given
power to declare a product to be prohibited if it is sweet or have special character which
attract the children. British American Tobacco Company has to take care of the amendments
done in the act and to follow the systematic framework provided by the act. If the company
does not follow then the consequences can be severe.
Public Health (Tobacco Act) 2008- This act mostly prominent in the area of New South
Wales where the British American Tobacco Company’s headquarter is located. This compels
the company to strictly follow the laws of the act. The act prohibits advertisements,
sponsorships, competition or loyalty schemes related to tobacco. Even free sampling is
restricted expect some area provided by the act. The act prohibits some specific kind of
advertising on the package for tobacco products like, anything written related to sports or
success of business, people or cartoon character, any words, sentences, images which attracts
children or adolescents and holograms. As the British American Company is situated in the
territory where the act has the jurisdiction, it have to take care of all the rules mentioned in
the act.
Tobacco Products Regulation Act 1997- This act states that all the exercises proposed to
expose or advance the buy or utilization of tobacco items are restricted. This incorporates
publicizing and limited time material at purpose of offer, and the showcase of tobacco items
in retail outlets (S & C, 1987). The idea of prizes, endowments or different advantages in
relationship with the clearance of a tobacco item is precluded. From 1 June 2008, client
reward or steadfastness plots regarding the clearance of tobacco items were likewise
disallowed. If British American Tobacco Company is planning a strategy to give gifts or any
other prize in regard to advertising of its products then they should first read the guidelines
and then alter their strategy for the advertisement.
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Tobacco Act 1987- The Tobacco Act was the first law in the territory of Australia to ban the
advertising on billboards and the shops and it was the best initiative taken by the government
of the country at that time in the world. In March 2006, some appropriate amendments were
made to give power to the limitations on the sale and advertisement of tobacco. These
amendments includes-
 Ban on smoking, the advertisement of tobacco goods and the sale of tobacco products
at music and dance events,
 Broadening the definition of tobacco advertisements to include advertisements of the
not so famous brands and the promotion of the cigarette papers
British American Company is the biggest manufacturer of the tobacco products and to keep
up its hold in the tobacco industry they implement every possible strategy but then it have to
focus on the strategies which does not violate or against the rules and regulations provided by
the Tobacco Act 1987.
Tobacco Act 1997- The Tobacco Act 1997 incorporates confinements on how tobacco items
can be shown. From 1 January 2011, tobacco items must be kept far out at all retail outlets
other than affirmed master tobacconists and on-airport duty free outlets (Anon., 2009).
Where tobacco products are allowed, the tobacco manufacturing companies including British
American Tobacco Company should conform to the accompanying limitations:
 just a single bundle of every tobacco product offering might be appeared. Diverse size
bundles are not treated as various product offerings,
 containers may not be shown. A special case to this applies on account of obligation
free outlets past the traditions obstruction at Melbourne Airport, which are allowed to
show cigarette containers,
 price tickets and value loads up are allowed subject to the confinements illustrated in
the guidelines with regards to the size, configuration and data that might be
incorporated,
 total display area for publicizing tobacco items must not be bigger than four square
meters,
 no lights or different accents are allowed as a feature of the presentation,
 a high contrast wellbeing cautioning/smoking end sign must be shown either at the
passage or close to the tobacco display,
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International Treaties and Conventions
World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control- Article 3
(World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 2019) of the WHO Framework on
Tobacco Control states that the world is facing real problem in health, social, environmental
and economic aspects due to consumption of tobacco. Australia became the signatory to the
WHO FCTC in 2003 and thus Australia is legally bound to act in good faith and with bona
fide intention to follow the obligations setup by the convention. Australia is a federal country
(known as the Commonwealth of Australia), whose legislature gets authorisation from the
Constitution. The Commonwealth Parliament has just those authoritative powers explicitly
agreed to it in the Constitution, while the states and domains that make up the Australian
alliance include entire influence inside their separate jurisdictions, implying that they have
administrative forces as for any issue other than those issues over which the Commonwealth
has elite influence.
Generally, tobacco control enactment in Australia has included both Commonwealth and
state and domain institutions. Certain regions, for example, security against used smoke, and
guideline of retail deals, have been left to the states and domains. In light of Australia’s
sanction of the WHO FCTC, the constitutional setting has changed. The Commonwealth may
institute laws to execute a universal settlement to which Australia is a gathering compliant
with its influence to make laws concerning outside issues under section 51(xxix) (Anon.,
2019) of the Constitution.
Apart from the creation of global tobacco control commitments and the subsequent change in
the extent of the authoritative influence of the Commonwealth, the WHO FCTC has extended
the associations between the advancement of tobacco control strategy in Australia and
universally. With Australia a Party to the Convention and a functioning member in its
procedures, the work that happens through the WHO FCTC COP is exceedingly significant to
local tobacco control. As point by point over, the Conference Of Parties has received definite
rules for viable usage of a significant number of the expansive scope of authoritative, official,
regulatory and different estimates required under the Convention. Together, the WHO FCTC
and its rules help to educate the needs regarding Australian governments, both
Commonwealth and state and domain, in connection to tobacco control approaches and
projects. Despite the fact that tobacco control is shared between the Commonwealth
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British American Tobacco
Government and state and region governments, the primary point of convergence for
execution of the WHO FCTC is the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs institutions of the
Australian Government Department of Health. It is a joint effort of other Australian
Government offices, state and domain government divisions, and non-government
associations including Cancer Councils.
The WHO FCTC gives a structure to worldwide participation in those zones of tobacco
control in which Australia and different Parties cannot viably act alone just as expecting
collaboration to permit all Parties, including creating nation Parties, to push ahead in
execution of the Convention. Australia has the duty to collaborate with other WHO FCTC
Parties to discuss trans-limit tobacco handling issues, and to help different parties in
gathering normal difficulties to successful tobacco control (Anon., 2018).
Universal Declaration of Human Rights- Universal Declaration Human Rights (UDHR) is
the apex and prominent document for the protecting human rights globally. It came into force
when United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution for common standard for all the
people. Basic human rights were to be protected under UDHR globally and the signatory
countries were obliged to pass the new acts and amendments in their respective national laws
(Anon., 2019). In the annual report of 2018, British American Tobacco Company mentioned
that in their industry the human right violations are almost nil but if there are any instance of
violation of human rights then to tackle that the company will implement policies, practices
and new framework. They try to identify, prevent and mitigate human right challenges,
impacts and abuses. In 2014, British American Company incorporated Human Rights Policy
in Standard of Business Conduct that provides protection to human rights to the workers in
the supply chain (Anon., 2018).
International Labour Organisation- International Labour Organisation was established in
1919. The primary objective of was to bring together governments, employers and labourers
on the member states (187 member states), to set the basic standards, to develop policies in
promoting safe work environment for all labour force (Anon., 2019). The main challenge in
the tobacco industry is to give protection to labour force especially in tobacco leaf supply
chain. These labourers are most vulnerable to the violation of labour laws. Majority of the
labourers are working in the environment where they have strict control and human right
violations is mostly avoided. British American Tobacco Company use Sustainable Tobacco
Programme (STP) to conduct due diligence on their own tobacco leaf operations and third
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party suppliers. It include the problems of safe working conditions, prevention of child
labour, prevention of forces labour and environmental protection. The company has evolved
steps from Eliminating Child Labour in Tobacco Growing (ECLT) and International Labour
Organisation. These helps in providing detailed guidelines in respect of regular training, the
conduct of farm training and monitoring and reporting of incidences of child labour (Anon.,
2018).
Bibliography
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Anon., 2009. Tobacco Amendment (Protection of Children) Act. [Online] Available at:
http://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/Domino/Web_Notes/LDMS/PubStatbook.nsf/
51dea49770555ea6ca256da4001b90cd/0D36D17FBA050989CA2576160010DECE/$FILE/
09-049a.pdf [Accessed 25 April 2019].
Anon., 2016. Commonwealth (national) legislation. [Online] Available at:
https://www.tobaccoinaustralia.org.au/chapter-11-advertising/11-3-commonwealth-
legislation [Accessed 25 April 2019].
Anon., 2018. Implications of the WHO FCTC for Australia. [Online] Available at:
https://www.tobaccoinaustralia.org.au/chapter-19-ftct/19-2-implications-of-the-who-fctc-for-
australia [Accessed 25 April 2019].
Anon., 2018. Tranforming Tobacco. Annual Report. British American Tobacco.
Anon., 2018. Transforming Tobacco. Annual Report; p. 29. British American Tobacco.
Anon., 2019. About the ILO. [Online] Available at:
https://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/lang--en/index.htm [Accessed 25 April 2019].
Anon., 2019. British American Tobacco Australia. [Online] Available at: https://www.top-
employers.com/en/companyprofiles/au/british-american-tobacco-australia/ [Accessed 25
April 2019].
Anon., 2019. British American Tobacco PLC. [Online] Available at: http://www.company-
histories.com/British-American-Tobacco-PLC-Company-History.html [Accessed 25 April
2019].
Anon., 2019. Our history – a timeline. [Online] Available at: https://www.bat.com/history
[Accessed 25 April 2019].
Anon., 2019. Part V - Powers of the Parliamen. [Online] Available at:
https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate/Powers_practice_n_procedures/
Constitution/chapter1/Part_V_-_Powers_of_the_Parliament [Accessed 25 April 2019].
Anon., 2019. People and culture. [Online] Available at:
http://www.bata.com.au/group/sites/BAT_9RNFLH.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO9RNMMT
[Accessed 25 April 2019].
Anon., 2019. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. [Online] Available at:
https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/ [Accessed 25 April 2019].
S, C. & C, R., 1987. Community Health Studies. In he South Australian Tobacco Products
Control Act 19986. pp.9-15.
World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 2019. WHO Framework Convention on
Tobacco Control. [Online] Available at:
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https://www.who.int/tobacco/framework/WHO_FCTC_english.pdf [Accessed 25 April
2019].
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