Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what preparations his Department has made for the UK ratifying the WHO Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products.

HM Revenue and Customs are the lead government body working towards ratifying the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products. The Department, as custodians of the United Kingdom Government’s signature to the WHO FCTC, provides support and a policy overview on such matters to HM Revenue and Customs. The Government is fully committed to the Protocol. A Command Paper setting out the UK’s plans to ratify the World Health Organization Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products now needs to be laid before Parliament. Preparations led by HM Revenue and Customs are underway and they expect to proceed shortly.