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High taxes stimulate rise in smuggling of cigarettes

Geoff Riley

6th February 2011

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One of the unintended consequences of the steep rise in the real price of cigarettes in the UK is the strong incentive to bring contraband cigarettes into the UK from elsewhere in the EU single market.

This Guardian article reports on the expected rise in smuggling as cigarette duties reach fresh highs in 2011. The average price of a pack of 20 cigarettes reached £6.29 in the UK last summer, compared with £2.80 in Spain and £1.57 in Poland.

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Geoff Riley

Geoff Riley FRSA has been teaching Economics for nearly forty years. He has over twenty years experience as Head of Economics at leading schools. He writes extensively and is a contributor and presenter on CPD and Revision conferences in the UK and overseas.