[LAST CALL] Repeal: "On Tobacco and Electronic Cigarettes"

[Crowheim]

Hiya, below is my drafted repeal for On Tobacco and Electronic CIgarettes. Any feedback appreciated!

On Tobacco And Electronic Cigarettes
A resolution to enact uniform standards that protect workers, consumers, and the general public.

Category: Regulation
Area of Effect: Consumer Protection
Proposed by: Cosmosplosion

Description: Understanding the wide recreational usage of tobacco and other products containing nicotine;

Recognizing the addictive nature of nicotine;

Noting the exorbitant health care costs users of tobacco products incur due to the adverse health effects associated with tobacco, which in many cases, result in the death of member nation's own citizens at a young age, and further noting that in nations with government funded health care systems, the high tax-revenue cost associated with treating these health effects;

Acknowledging the popularity and lesser health risks of electronic cigarettes as an alternative to tobacco based products;

Emphasizing that the goal of this resolution is not to prevent people from purchasing tobacco and electronic cigarette products, but to establish a set of regulations on these industries and to promote the education of the risks associated with them;

The World Assembly hereby;

• Defines a "tobacco product" as a product containing tobacco plant for the intent of recreational consumption. These products include, but are not limited to, cigarettes, chewing tobacco, and hookah;
  
  
• Further defines an "electronic cigarette" as a device containing a liquid that is vaporized and inhaled, used to simulate the experience of smoking tobacco;
  
  
• Mandates that all tobacco and electronic cigarette products containing nicotine which are intended for recreational consumption must be labeled with an identifier that states, “This product contains nicotine, a chemical known to be addictive;” and must take up at least 15% of the packaging of the product. This warning should be printed in the language local to the intended marketplace;
  
  
• Requires that tobacco products must be labelled with an identifier which states, “This product is known to cause several types of cancer and other long term, serious health problems. If you are currently pregnant, consumption is known to cause birth defects;” and must take up at least 15% of the packaging of the product. This warning should be printed in the language local to the intended marketplace;
  
  
• Further requires that electronic cigarette products that contain a liquid intended to be vaporized must state, “Do not ingest. Keep out of reach of children and infants.” This warning must take up at least 15% of the packaging of the product. This warning should be printed in the language local to the intended marketplace;
  
  
• Demands that member nations educate all residents on the long term effects of tobacco use, by funding informational campaigns, targeted at both minor and adult smokers, encouraging them to quit smoking or to replace tobacco products with electronic cigarettes or related products, while also funding informational campaigns targeted at non-smokers, using pictures, detailed descriptions, and/or other forms of media to demonstrate the negative effects associated with tobacco product usage;

Furthermore,

Recommends member nations establish poison control centers, which shall provide emergency control services in the event that a tobacco or electronic cigarette product is improperly ingested;

Encourages member nations to prohibit the sale of tobacco products and electronic cigarettes to minors;

Urges member nations to prohibit advertisements for tobacco products;

Further encourages member nations to consider taking further action against tobacco use, especially among minors.

Co-authored by Akohos and Courelli

The World Assembly,

Applauding the efforts of the General Assembly via GAR#459, On Tobacco and Electronic Cigarettes, to reduce the consumption of these products and improve global health through this reduction,

Noting the specificity of the mandates in the resolution, requiring very precise and exact action on the issue at hand, and concerned that specifically the requirement for warning labels to be printed in the local language allows for ways to avoid the mandates by selecting a language technically native to the area but not actually spoken by sizable or majority portions of the native population,

Alarmed by the potential for evading effective labelling for sizable portions of the population in multi-lingual areas, where the language printed on the relevant product is not spoken by a resident of said area,

Recognizing the lack of a clear definition of what constitutes packaging for the products, allowing labels to be placed in hard-to-see locations, as well as the fact that this loophole could mean that the required 30 percent of packaging ends up much smaller than intended if a producer abused this lack of definition to count only small amounts of the effective packaging as the official parts,

Startled by the fact that the exact wording of the warning labels is mandated in this resolution and thus unchangeable, even when scientific developments or other important changes with these products occur and would require an updated label,

Disappointed in the fact that due to previous GA resolutions, such as GAR#299, Legal Competence, it would be very difficult to pass meaningful legislation controlling tobacco usage and addiction without trampling on rights previously afforded to nations by the Assembly,

Acknowledging that the regulations on labelling tobacco products are very likely ineffectual due to the fact that few individuals actually read these labels who are not already fully aware of the dangerous impacts of tobacco, rendering nearly the entirety of the resolution to be useless,

Concluding that GAR#459 serves as a hinderance to any individual nation seeking to pass more effective legislation on the matter, and that it is rather ineffectual in achieving the goals it is intended to reach,

Repeals "On Tobacco and Electronic Cigarettes".

[South St Maarten]

Hello!

A couple of initial comments:

For the noting clause, I'd elaborate further on how the specificity of the mandates could cause issues for the management of tobacco products, i.e. provide an example

Furthermore, in the believing clause hindrance to further legislation is not a justification for a repeal. You can recommend a replacement resolution be drafted, sure, but overall try to be more specific in why this resolution needs to be repealed.

[Bananaistan]

"Opposed. More international micromanagement of a local "problem" is bad."

[Crowheim]

Hello!

A couple of initial comments:

For the noting clause, I'd elaborate further on how the specificity of the mandates could cause issues for the management of tobacco products, i.e. provide an example

Furthermore, in the believing clause hindrance to further legislation is not a justification for a repeal. You can recommend a replacement resolution be drafted, sure, but overall try to be more specific in why this resolution needs to be repealed.

Edited a bit to fit this.

[Crowheim]

"Opposed. More international micromanagement of a local "problem" is bad."

Changed the motivation and angle of the draft to fit this and comments made on Discord.

[Tinhampton]

Alexander Smith, Tinhamptonian Delegate-Ambassador to the World Assembly: The name of Resolution Two-Hundred and Ninety-Nine I think you are looking for is Legal Competence. We were opposed to the resolution on Tobacco and Electronic Cigarettes passing in the first place and will be supportive of all repeals - without replacement!

[Crowheim]

Alexander Smith, Tinhamptonian Delegate-Ambassador to the World Assembly: The name of Resolution Two-Hundred and Ninety-Nine I think you are looking for is Legal Competence. We were opposed to the resolution on Tobacco and Electronic Cigarettes passing in the first place and will be supportive of all repeals - without replacement!

We appreciate the support and have corrected the error you pointed out.

[Crowheim]

Bumping since I haven’t gotten anything else since last week

[Imperium Anglorum]

Doing a quick read, there are two arguments: (1) NatSov and (2) 'it's not clear/specific'. The first is a NatSov argument; the second is by precedent also a NatSov argument. If that precedent is affirmed, then the repeal would be held as a violation of the NatSov-only rule. Further work would be needed on the specificities argument.

I also highly recommend omitting bolding from your operative verbs.

[Crowheim]

Doing a quick read, there are two arguments: (1) NatSov and (2) 'it's not clear/specific'. The first is a NatSov argument; the second is by precedent also a NatSov argument. If that precedent is affirmed, then the repeal would be held as a violation of the NatSov-only rule. Further work would be needed on the specificities argument.

I also highly recommend omitting bolding from your operative verbs.

I've added another clause on the ineffectiveness of the labels that should make it on the legal side of NatSov rule if I understand it correctly.

Removed the bolding on the operative clauses.

[Meretica]

I, oddly enough, find myself in support of this repeal-- so long as it is replaced. Meretica has had a firm hold over the control of substance abuse and needs no foreign intervention. However, that is what is best for Meretica, not the international community. Additionally, some tobacco items-- pipes, for instance-- are ignored by both the previously passed legislation and the proposed repeal.

A replacement must include most if not all of the following:

• Increased taxes on tobacco products to fund education programs and attempt to avert people from buying cigarettes, etc
• Emphasize drug education be mandated in schools so as to discourage people from using tobacco and other drugs from a young age
• Change wording from the passed legislation from "Encourages member nations to prohibit the sale of tobacco products and electronic cigarettes to minors" to something stronger and more forceful
• Include rehabilitation centers and poison control centers
• Keep most if not all of the current definitions of "tobacco" and "electronic cigarette"
• Include packaging requirements
• Require member nations to continue educating their respective populaces on the results of tobacco use

[Ardiveds]

A replacement must include most if not all of the following:
[list][*]Increased taxes on tobacco products to fund education programs and attempt to avert people from buying cigarettes, etc

OOC: Unfortunately, proposals can't directly dictate internal taxation of member states.

[Crowheim]

I, oddly enough, find myself in support of this repeal-- so long as it is replaced. Meretica has had a firm hold over the control of substance abuse and needs no foreign intervention. However, that is what is best for Meretica, not the international community. Additionally, some tobacco items-- pipes, for instance-- are ignored by both the previously passed legislation and the proposed repeal.

A replacement must include most if not all of the following:

• Increased taxes on tobacco products to fund education programs and attempt to avert people from buying cigarettes, etc
• Emphasize drug education be mandated in schools so as to discourage people from using tobacco and other drugs from a young age
• Change wording from the passed legislation from "Encourages member nations to prohibit the sale of tobacco products and electronic cigarettes to minors" to something stronger and more forceful
• Include rehabilitation centers and poison control centers
• Keep most if not all of the current definitions of "tobacco" and "electronic cigarette"
• Include packaging requirements
• Require member nations to continue educating their respective populaces on the results of tobacco use

There will not be a replacement. Fair and effective tobacco legislation would be effectively impossible to craft at an international scale outside of a blanket ban on tobacco products which I have no interest in writing.

[Crowheim]

Beefed up two new paragraphs to detail exactly how the specificity of the mandates is detrimental

[Crowheim]

Planning on submitting in early June withholding any massive issues that may arise.

[Crowheim]

Bumping this to put it on last call.

[Crowheim]

Going to submit this tonight withholding any major issues that may arise.

[Greater Cesnica]

"This enjoys our support."

[Araraukar]

OOC post.

Applauding the efforts of the General Assembly via GAR#459, On Tobacco and Electronic Cigarettes, to reduce the consumption of these products and improve global health through this reduction,

Don't applaud the efforts, applaud the intent. And maybe reword something like "to regulate nicotine products in an attempt to reduce the health problems caused by their consumption" as that's closer to the truth.

Noting the rigid specificity of the mandates in the resolution, requiring very precise and exact action on the issue at hand, and concerned that specifically some may be easily subverted such as the requirement for warning labels to be printed in the local language allows for ways to avoid the mandates by selecting a language technically native to the area but not actually spoken by a sizable or majority portions of the native portion of the population,

Edits.

Alarmed by the potential for evading effective labelling for sizable portions of the population in multi-lingual areas, where the language printed on the relevant product is not spoken by a resident of said area,

You already said this.

Recognizing the lack of a clear definition of what constitutes packaging for the products, allowing labels to be placed in hard-to-see locations, as well as the fact that this loophole could mean that the required 30 percent of packaging ends up much smaller than intended if a producer abused this lack of definition to count only small amounts of the effective packaging as the official parts,

This isn't a reasonable argument. What you could have said was that nothing specifies the two 15% areas (for tobacco, three 15% areas for vaping products) must not be the same 15% (creatively compliant nation could print those things in the same 15% area, just in different colours so that they're readable still), but even that would be something of a stretch.

Startled by the fact that the exact wording of the warning labels is mandated in this resolution and thus unchangeable,even when scientific developments or other important changes with these products occur and would require an updated label,

You don't need to clarify why. That unchangeability is a problem all on its own.

Disappointed in the fact that due to previous GA resolutions, such as GAR#299, Legal Competence, it would be very difficult to pass meaningful legislation controlling tobacco usage and addiction without trampling on rights previously afforded to nations by the Assembly,

...this doesn't sound right. I'm fairly sure that "age when you're allowed to buy tobacco" is one of those age limits that nations are specifically allowed to set themselves, and thus is no problem here.

Acknowledging that the regulations on labelling tobacco products are very likely ineffectual due to the fact that few individuals actually read these labels who are not already fully aware of the dangerous impacts of tobacco, rendering nearly the entirety of the resolution to be useless,

Not sure if you missed the bits of the resolution that come after the three labeling clauses, but it kinda sounds like that. Not counting definitions, it has 8 clauses, 3 of which are about labeling. The majority of the resolution would still be useful even if those three were absolute nonsense. So this sounds like an Honest Mistake (which is a repeal-specific illegality).

Concluding that GAR#459 serves as a hinderance to any individual nation seeking to pass more effective legislation on the matter, and that it is rather ineffectual in achieving the goals it is intended to reach,

Except it actually tells them they should do just that. This also sounds like an Honest Mistake.