Parliament, Monday, 27 November 2023 – The Portfolio Committee on Health has successfully concluded three public hearings on the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill in Gauteng with residents of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality expressing contrasting views on the Bill.
The committee wishes to correct misconceptions that it intentionally locked out a majority of members of the public who were against the Bill from the venue in Tshwane and preventing them from raising their objection to the Bill. The committee has since the start of these hearings on the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill promoted public involvement and ensured an environment for meaningful public participation.
The venue provided by the municipality could only accommodate 250 people and by the time the public hearings started it had reached its full capacity. The committee has a dual responsibility when it comes to securing a venue for public hearings. It must ensure a conducive environment for meaningful public participation on the one hand, and it must ensure that safety and security protocols are adhered to.
Efforts to address capacity challenges included making available forms for written submissions to everyone to enable written comments. The committee attaches the same value to both oral and written submissions. Representatives of groups outside the venue also had the opportunity to enter and make oral submissions on the Bill. It is thus incorrect and concerning that there are people trying to peddle untruths about what has been a fair process.
The committee reiterates its commitment to listen to all views on the Bill and is confident that it provided every member of the public adequate opportunity to air their views on the Bill. The Bill seeks to strengthen public health protection measures, align South African tobacco control laws with the World Health Organization Framework Convention and repeal the Tobacco Control Act of 1993 (Act No. 83 of 1993).
The proposed legislative and policy changes seek to introduce the following:
(a) indoor public places and certain outdoor areas that will be designated 100 per cent
smoke-free;
(b) a ban on the sale of cigarettes through vending machines;
(c) plain packaging with graphic health warnings and pictorials;
(d) a ban on display at point-of-sale; and
(e) the regulation and control of electronic nicotine delivery systems and non-nicotine delivery systems.
During the hearings, residents who rejected the Bill based his on the view that the preamble of the Bill incorrectly classified nicotine as a toxic substance. While participants with this view acknowledged that nicotine is addictive, they called for the reclassification of the Bill to highlight the difference between electronic delivery systems and combustible cigarettes.
Some small-scale traders who were also critical of the Bill feared that passing the Bill would criminalise them and their small businesses when all they were trying to do was to make a living. They cautioned that the closure of small businesses will leave many families destitute, as many depend on the sale of tobacco products for their livelihood.
Some residents have raised concern over the negative impact the Bill will have on South Africa’s tax base. Participants argued that the implementation of the Bill will decrease the contribution made by the tobacco industry to the country’s fiscus. They also argued that the implementation of the Bill would enable the illicit cigarette market to grow. There were calls for government to find solutions to the challenge of illicit cigarettes.
Many who objected to the Bill stressed the need for reliable information and urged government to better educate the public about the dangers of consumption of tobacco products. There were also concerns about a gap in enforcement mechanisms to ensure implementation of the Bill.
Those in support of the Bill argued for the use of plain packaging because it would reduce compulsive buying of tobacco products. They also embraced proposals to have pictures on the packaging to highlight the dangers of smoking and for the outright banning of the sale of tobacco products through vending machines. Some residents in support of the Bill expressed confidence that the Bill will protect non-smokers against the dangers imposed by second hand smoke inhalation.
Having completed the Gauteng public hearings, the committee will resume hearings on the Bill in KwaZulu-Natal in January next year.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, DR KENNETH JACOBS.
For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairperson, please contact the committee’s Media Officer:
Name: Malatswa Molepo (Mr)
Parliamentary Communication Services
Tel: 021 403 8438
Cell: 081 512 7920
E-mail: mmolepo@parliament.gov.za
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