Battle to stem tide of black market cigarettes

Rotherham Council says that its trading standards officers are working closely with the police to identify premises involved in selling black market fags.

Shops and homes have been targeted and any illicit tobacco was seised, said a council spokesman.

The revelation comes in the wake of a survey which revealed that more than half of the cigarette packets thrown away in Rotherham had contained imported, counterfeit or smuggled cigarettes.

“People seem to believe that buying cheap these is a victimless crime.

“This is not the case, as we are all victims when our taxes increase because these dealers are not paying for them, or that the local shop shuts or that our children are gaining easy access to cheap cigarettes that leave them hooked for the rest of their lives.”

Cllr Wyatt also backed calls for people to report fake cigarette dealers to Crimestoppers and urged smokers to quit with help from the Rotherham NHS Stop Smoking Service, which can be contacted on 01709 422444.

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