LONDON: The days of branded cigarette packets in Britain and France are numbered as new plain packaging laws came into effect on Friday, hailed by anti-smoking campaigners despite resistance from tobacco firms.

The logos and distinctive colours on cigarette packets will be replaced with neutral packaging, a move that health campaigners said was a major step in reducing demand for a “deadly and addictive product”.

The new packs will be introduced in both countries over the coming months following similar legislation in Australia credited with helping to cut down on smoking rates, especially among young people. British retailers will have a year to sell existing stock and those in France have until Jan 1, at which point branded packets of cigarettes and hand-rolled tobacco will become a thing of the past.

Published in Dawn, May 21st, 2016