No. S 419
Tobacco
(Control of Advertisements and Sale) Act
(CHAPTER 309)
Tobacco
(Control of Advertisements and Sale)
(Labelling) Regulations 2012
In exercise of the powers conferred by sections 17, 17A and 37(1) of the Tobacco (Control of Advertisements and Sale) Act, the Minister for Health hereby makes the following Regulations:
Citation and commencement
1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Tobacco (Control of Advertisements and Sale) (Labelling) Regulations 2012 and shall come into operation on 1st March 2013.
Definitions
2.  In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —
“health warning” means any of the warnings required to be printed on retail packages of tobacco products under regulations 4, 5 and 6;
“retail package” —
(a)means any box, carton, tin, packet or other container in which tobacco products are supplied for the purpose of retail sale or display for retail sale; and
(b)includes, in the case where the package is, or several packages are, contained inside one or more larger packages, the smaller package or each of the smaller packages, as the case may be;
“smoked tobacco product” means any product that contains tobacco other than a smokeless tobacco product;
“smokeless tobacco product” means any product that contains tobacco intended for use, or labelled or described as suitable for use, other than smoking.
Restrictions on form of retail package
3.—(1)  Subject to paragraph (2), a retail package shall not have more than 6 sides in any configuration.
(2)  The edge that serves as a connecting surface between 2 adjacent sides of a retail package, may consist of a single bevelled or rounded edge, provided that each such bevelled or rounded edge shall not exceed 6 millimetres in width.
Warnings on smoked tobacco products
4.—(1)  Except as provided in regulation 5, there shall be clearly and conspicuously printed on every retail package of any smoked tobacco product one of the warnings set out in the First Schedule.
(2)  The warning referred to in paragraph (1) —
(a)shall be printed —
(i)on any part of the external surface of any spherical retail package;
(ii)on the largest external surface of any cylindrical or conical retail package; or
(iii)on the 2 largest external surfaces of any other kind of retail package;
(b)shall not be printed on any bevelled or rounded edges adjacent to the said surface(s) referred to in sub‑paragraph (a);
(c)shall occupy not less than 50% of the total area of the surface of the retail package on which the warning is printed;
(d)shall conform with the specifications set out in the First Schedule;
(e)shall be positioned —
(i)parallel to the top edge of the retail package, and as much as possible towards the top part of the retail package while satisfying the requirements of sub‑paragraph (f); and
(ii)in the same direction as how the retail package is to be ordinarily displayed; and
(f)shall be printed in a manner which ensures that when the retail package is opened or closed in the normal way —
(i)no portion of the warning is obliterated or becomes unreadable; and
(ii)the warning is not severed or is severed only at the conjunction between Parts I and II of the warning.
(3)  Each of the warnings set out in the First Schedule shall be printed in rotation on the retail packages of each kind of smoked tobacco product so that, during the period of 24 months beginning on 1st March 2013 and every subsequent 24-month period, each warning appears as far as possible on an equal number of retail packages of each kind of tobacco product supplied in that period.
(4)  Where a retail package referred to in paragraph (1) is made of wood or any kind of flexible plastic material, the warning required to be printed on the retail package under this regulation —
(a)may be printed on a mirror-coated adhesive label that is firmly affixed to the retail package so as not to be easily removable; and
(b)shall conform with these Regulations in all other respects.
Warnings on small retail packages of smoked tobacco products
5.—(1)  Where the external surface area of a retail package of any smoked tobacco product does not exceed 9,000 square millimetres, there shall be clearly and conspicuously printed on the retail package one of the warnings set out in the Second Schedule.
(2)  The warning referred to in paragraph (1) —
(a)shall be printed —
(i)on any part of the external surface of any spherical retail package;
(ii)on the largest external surface of any cylindrical or conical retail package; or
(iii)on the 2 largest external surfaces of any other kind of retail package;
(b)shall not be printed on any bevelled or rounded edges adjacent to the said surface(s) referred to in sub‑paragraph (a);
(c)shall occupy not less than 50% of the total area of the surface of the retail package on which the warning is printed;
(d)shall conform with the specifications set out in the Second Schedule;
(e)shall be positioned —
(i)parallel to the top edge of the retail package, and as much as possible towards the top part of the retail package while satisfying the requirements of sub‑paragraph (f); and
(ii)in the same direction as how the retail package is to be ordinarily displayed; and
(f)shall be printed in a manner which ensures that when the retail package is opened or closed in the normal way, no portion of the warning is severed, obliterated or becomes unreadable.
(3)  Each of the warnings set out in the Second Schedule shall be printed in rotation on the retail packages of any smoked tobacco product referred to in paragraph (1) so that, during the period of 24 months beginning on 1st March 2013 and every subsequent 24‑month period, each warning appears as far as possible on an equal number of retail packages of each kind of tobacco product supplied in that period.
Warnings on smokeless tobacco products
6.—(1)  There shall be clearly and conspicuously printed on every retail package of any smokeless tobacco product one of the warnings set out in the Third Schedule.
(2)  The warning referred to in paragraph (1) —
(a)shall be printed —
(i)on any part of the external surface of any spherical retail package;
(ii)on the largest external surface of any cylindrical or conical retail package; or
(iii)on the 2 largest external surfaces of any other kind of retail package;
(b)shall not be printed on any bevelled or rounded edges adjacent to the said surface(s) referred to in sub‑paragraph (a);
(c)shall occupy not less than 50% of the total area of the surface of the retail package on which the warning is printed;
(d)shall conform with the specifications set out in the Third Schedule;
(e)shall be positioned —
(i)parallel to the top edge of the retail package, and as much as possible towards the top part of the retail package while satisfying the requirements of sub‑paragraph (f); and
(ii)in the same direction as how the retail package is to be ordinarily displayed; and
(f)shall be printed in a manner which ensures that when the retail package is opened or closed in the normal way, no portion of the warning is severed, obliterated or becomes unreadable.
(3)  Each of the warnings set out in the Third Schedule shall be printed in rotation on the retail packages of each kind of smokeless tobacco product so that, during the period of 24 months beginning on 1st March 2013 and every subsequent 24-month period, each warning appears as far as possible on an equal number of retail packages of each kind of smokeless tobacco product supplied in that period.
Health information on cigarette retail packages
7.—(1)  In addition to the warning referred to in regulation 4(1) or 5(1), there shall be clearly and conspicuously printed on every cigarette retail package, the following words:
“Smoking exposes you and those around you to more than 4,000 toxic chemicals, of which at least 60 can cause cancer. The chemicals include tar, nicotine, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, ammonia and benzene.”.
(2)  The health information message referred to in paragraph (1) —
(a)shall be displayed in Arial typeface in white colour in block letters of not less than 2 millimetres in height and set against a black background;
(b)shall be of such a size that the text as nearly as possible fills the background on which it is printed;
(c)shall, if the message appears on the side of the retail package, be oriented so that the lines of type making up the message are parallel to the longest edges of the surface on which the message is printed;
(d)shall not be displayed on the same side of the retail package on which the warning referred to in regulation 4(1) or 5(1) is displayed, where the retail package has more than 2 external surfaces; and
(e)shall occupy not less than 50% of the total area of the surface of the retail package on which the warning is printed, where the retail package has more than 2 external surfaces.
Sales restriction information on retail packages
8.—(1)  In addition to the warning referred to in regulation 4(1), 5(1) or 6(1) and the health information message referred to in regulation 7(1), there shall be clearly and conspicuously printed on every retail package of any tobacco product, the words “NO SALE TO PERSONS UNDER 18”.
(2)  The words referred to in paragraph (1) —
(a)shall be displayed in Arial typeface block letters of not less than 2 millimetres in height;
(b)shall be in a colour that makes the words appear conspicuous against the colour of the background of the retail package; and
(c)shall not be printed on the same side of the retail package on which the warning referred to in regulation 4(1), 5(1) or 6(1) is displayed, where the retail package has more than 2 external surfaces.
Messages not to be obscured, etc.
9.  Where the health warning, information or words that are required to be printed under these Regulations are likely to be obscured or obliterated by an outer wrapper or other item attached to the retail package when displayed for retail sale, the health warning, information or words, as the case may be, shall, in addition to being printed on the retail package, be printed on such wrapper or other item attached to the retail package.
Prohibition of false and misleading labelling for tobacco packaging
10.  The following terms are prescribed terms for the purposes of section 17A(2)(b) of the Act:
(a)“light”;
(b)“lights”;
(c)“low tar”;
(d)“low-tar”;
(e)“mild”; and
(f)“ultra-light”.
Prohibition of import for distribution, etc.
11.—(1)  With the exception of a tobacco product for export, no person shall supply any tobacco product in Singapore which fails to conform with any of the requirements under these Regulations.
(2)  In this regulation, “tobacco product for export” means a tobacco product that is to be exported out of Singapore, and is not to be offered for sale, sold or consumed in Singapore.
Revocation
12.  The Smoking (Control of Advertisements and Sale of Tobacco) (Labelling) Regulations (Rg  2) are revoked.
Made this 13th day of August 2012.
TAN CHING YEE
Permanent Secretary,
Ministry of Health,
Singapore.
[MH 78:29/2; AG/LLRD/SL/309/2010/3 Vol. 2]
(To be presented to Parliament under section 37(2) of the Tobacco (Control of Advertisements and Sale) Act).
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