Cigarettes and Tobacco

On 14 February 2003 The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 came into force, prohibiting the advertising and promotion of tobacco products. It does not, however, cover advertisements for rolling papers or filters and does permit certain tobacco advertising at point of sale. Self-regulatory rules and procedures for these categories are under review and will be published on www.cap.org.uk when finalised.

Before the ban on tobacco advertising, strict rules applied to advertisements and promotions for tobacco products. The Cigarette Code was exceptional in that it was the outcome of discussions between the Department of Health, the manufacturers and importers of cigarettes and the ASA. It ran in parallel with, and its rules were applied in addition to, those imposed elsewhere in the Codes. All advertisements for tobacco advertisements had to be pre-approved by the CAP Copy Advice team before publication.

Recent Adjudications: