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The tradition of bringing back hundreds of cheap cigarettes from holidays abroad is about to go up in a puff of smoke.

Proposals are currently being examined which would see a dramatic increase in the tax on tobacco throughout the EU region. The moves are being made after research by the World Bank showed that burning a hole in people’s pockets is the best way to reduce the level of smoking.

Experts say that the proposed increase would cut the number of smokers by an average of 10pc over the next five years.

It is thought that changes will have the biggest impact in Poland where they expect more than 20pc to give up as a result of price increases.

The proposal outlined by Taxation Commissioner, Laszlo Kovacs, is for a gradual increase in EU minimum taxation levels on cigarettes and fine-cut tobacco up to 2014.

It would also remove loopholes that allow some cigarettes or fine-cut tobacco to be presented as cigars, cigarillos or pipe tobacco and so benefit from a lower tax rate.

The plan also aims to bring tobacco taxation levels in line across all 27 EU member states.

At the moment, the difference in taxation can be as high as 600pc leading to intra-EU tobacco smuggling especially in the new member states.

The level of smuggling varies across the EU and accounts for up to 9pc of the EU tobacco market. But in some major markets this is as high as 20pc. The countries most susceptible to illegal tobacco are those closest to Russia and other markets that do not impose high tax on cigarettes.

Mr Kovacs said it would also make the taxation rules more transparent, and create a level playing field for manufacturers and give flexibility to member states to set minimum taxes.

Washington - A new study has found that manufacturers are deliberately manipulating menthol content in cigarettes to attract young people.

Researchers from Harvard School of Public Health found that the tobacco industry is intentionally adjusting menthol to create a milder experience for the first time smoker.

Menthol covers the harshness and irritation of cigarettes, allowing delivery of an effective dose of nicotine, the addictive chemical in cigarettes.

"For decades, the tobacco industry has carefully manipulated menthol content not only to lure youth but also to lock in lifelong adult customers," said Howard Koh, Professor and Associate Dean for Public Health Practice at HSPH and a co-author of the paper.

A team of researchers led Jennifer M. Kreslake, a research analysis from the Tobacco Control Research Program at HSPH analysed the internal tobacco industry documents on menthol product development, and conducted laboratory tests to measure menthol content in U.S. brands, examined market research reports

She also drew data from the 2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an annual nationally representative survey among U.S. residents aged 12 years and older

The industry documents revealed that tobacco companies researched how controlling menthol levels could increase brand sales among specific groups.

The companies determined that products with higher menthol levels and stronger perceived menthol sensation suited long-term smokers of menthol cigarettes while milder brands with lower menthol levels appealed to younger smokers.

According to a 2006 study, 43.8 percent of current smokers aged 12 to 17 years reported that they used menthol cigarettes as did 35.6 percent of current smokers aged 18 to 24 years.

By contrast, 30.6 percent of smokers older than 35 years reported menthol use.

The authors suggest, "to protect the public health, tobacco products should be federally regulated, and additives such as menthol should be included in that regulation."

"This is another example of the cynical behavior of the tobacco industry to hook teens and African Americans to a deadly addiction. This is after the industry told the American public it had changed its marketing practices. The FDA bill provides the vehicle to end the hypocrisy and save the lives of the young and a targeted minority group," said Gregory N. Connolly, Professor of the Practice of Public Health and director of the Tobacco Control Research Program at HSPH.

The study appears in the online "First Look" section of the American Journal of Public Health.

SHOREWOOD — Village officials will be keeping a closer eye on tobacco sales.

The village board Tuesday unanimously approved an ordinance regulating and licensing businesses that sell tobacco products.

Mayor Richard Chapman said village staff will be contacting all affected businesses over the next few months and setting them up with the proper paperwork to apply for a tobacco license.

Businesses that hold a liquor license are exempt from the tobacco licensing requirements.

Chapman estimates 10 to 25 businesses, like the village’s two tobacco shops and numerous gas stations, will be affected by the new ordinance. However, he expects the transition to be easy.

"This is not a huge administrative nightmare," he said.

The purchase or renewal of a license is $250 annually.

The licensing ordinance is designed to mirror that of the village’s liquor regulations and outlines more than two dozen restrictions on whom can be issued a license. For example, those applying for a license must be a U.S. citizen, never convicted of a felony and in good standing in the community.

Chapman, who sponsored the ordinance, said it brings more attention to the people selling controlled substances.

"It gives us a little more leverage with them to make sure they’re doing the right thing," he said.

Village police will inspect each licensee and will report violations to the mayor and village administrator Kurt Carroll. Those found in violation will be subject to suspension or revocation of its license. Chapman will preside over such hearings.

Suspensions will not exceed 30 days and fines will begin at $100 for the first offense, increasing to no less than $500 for subsequent offenses.

The village has been working on the tobacco licensing policy for over a year. With no changes from the ordinance’s first reading earlier this month, the board approved the measure without significant discussion.

Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki says he hopes legislators consider approving his plan that could raise $600 million to $775 million in revenue without increasing taxes to address the budget shortfall.

"These are extraordinary times, and Nevada needs to take extraordinary measures," Krolicki said Thursday by phone from Beijing, where he is heading a state trade mission.

Under his plan, the state would sell bonds and use the revenue to cover current debts. The bonds would be repaid from the annual payments the state receives from tobacco companies.

Nevada receives about $50 million a year from the tobacco industry to compensate for the medical costs to the state of tobacco-related illnesses.

"The situation is so dire now it makes sense to use tobacco securitization to balance the state budget," Krolicki said. "You can’t nickel and dime your way out of a $1 billion budget shortfall."

Legislators next week are scheduled to go into a special session to cut $100 million to $200 million more in state spending because of falling tax revenues. Lawmakers and Gov. Jim Gibbons already have approved $914 million in cuts to the two-year budget that ends June 30, 2009.

Krolicki’s plan isn’t without its critics.

In a letter Wednesday to Gibbons, state Treasurer Kate Marshall said her office has been unable to secure the "working papers" on the assumptions Krolicki used to arrive at the estimated proceeds from his plan. If the Legislature considers the proposal, Marshall said, she wants to work with the attorney general "to determine the extent to which such action would put the state at risk of engaging in fiduciary failure."

Marshall also pointed out that Krolicki in 2003 told the Senate Committee on Government Affairs that a tobacco securitization plan would be a "tremendous fiduciary failure" and should not be used to "balance today’s budget."

At the time, Krolicki was state treasurer.

Krolicki said that in earlier sessions he advocated legislators issue bonds against the tobacco money. But at the 2003 session, he said, he opposed the plan because "it is too expensive and the market is not right."

The situation has changed dramatically since 2003, Krolicki said, and the plan is needed because there is no guarantee Nevada will continue to receive money from the tobacco industry at current levels.

The tobacco money now is used to cover some of the expenses of the Millennium Scholarship and SeniorRx programs.

"It is one of the few options that can raise a considerable amount of money without raising taxes or substantially harming a considerable amount of people," Krolicki said.

Legislators and the governor are looking at ways to cut spending without laying off workers.

Krolicki said his plan is available on his Web site and in handouts he has distributed to the media. He said he proposed creation of a working group, which would include the treasurer, to review the plan before any bonds were sold.

"I would be pleased to work with her (Marshall) and show how the model works," he said. "She is making noise now in a nonconstructive way."

Since Marshall assumed his job in January 2007, the two have been at loggerheads.

Krolicki has been investigated by the Nevada Division of Investigation because of concerns Marshall raised over his handling of a college tuition program and office e-mail messages. No charges have been filed against him.

It just got harder to buy cigarettes in Ontario. Thanks to a law enacted this week, Ontario now joins the ranks of Quebec, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan by banning the display of tobacco products in stores. Retailers have been forced to cover so-called "power walls" — the large displays of cigarette brands found behind the cash register at the local convenience store, gas station or supermarket — and customers must now pay for their smokes before they can legally touch them. Smokers are even prohibited from holding more than one pack of cigarettes at any given moment. This strikes us as a futile exercise. There is no doubt that smoking is extremely detrimental to health. The links between cigarettes and a litany of diseases, many of them fatal, is unquestionable: Lung cancer, heart disease, emphysema, impotence and even cataracts are all caused by smoking. Cigarette smoke leaves a trail of collateral damage, too: Research shows that secondhand smoking can lead to the same kind of health problems as smoking. Non-smokers who live with partners who smoke inside the home have up to a 30% increased risk of developing lung cancer, and those exposed to cigarette smoke in the workplace have an increased risk of up to 20%. But we do not believe that these real risks counsel for the absurd notion of diligently protecting customers’ delicate senses from perceiving tobacco products … until they’ve laid out some cash. Ontario’s government has reasoned that the new law will convince people to quit smoking, leaving fewer stroke victims and lung cancer patients taking up hospital beds. This argument fails to take into account the savings smokers create by not lingering into old age, when health care costs typically zoom into the stratosphere. But even setting the cold cost calculus aside, it is very hard to believe that keeping cigarettes behind a black curtain will do anything to dissuade people from buying them. If that were all it took to kick a nicotine habit, smokers would be flocking to drapery stores, instead of buying nicotine gum and patches. The Ontario government has succeeded in adding a financial and practical burden to retailers. But when it comes to reducing tobacco consumption, it is just blowing smoke.