Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, how many prosecutions for the sale of illegal tobacco have taken place in each police authority area in each of the last 10 years.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of people who have been charged with, and prosecuted for, selling illegal tobacco. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

The Tobacco Products Duty Act 1979 relates to the excise duty on tobacco products. Section 8G(4) and 8H(6) of the act was inserted by the Finance Act 2000 and creates the offences of (a) possess, transport or display unmarked tobacco products otherwise than as described and (b) selling, offering to sell or otherwise deals in unmarked tobacco products; or suffers premises to be used for the sale of unmarked tobacco products. In these sections unmarked products mean tobacco products that are subject to fiscal marking but do not carry compliant duty-paid fiscal mark.

Although it is not possible to identify the number of people charged with particular offences, records are held showing the overall number of offences in which a prosecution commenced in the Magistrates’ courts. The table below shows the number of offences, rather than defendants, charged by way of the Tobacco Products Duty Act 1979. A single defendant may be charged with more than one offence. Data are only available since 2011-12. Prior to this date, prosecutions under this legislation were carried out by the Revenue and Customers Prosecution Office (RCPO).

The Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 relates to the collection and management of the revenues of custom and excise. Prosecutions under section 170(1)(b) for being knowingly concerned in ‘carrying, removing, depositing, harbouring, keeping or concealing or in any manner dealing’ with excise goods and the offence of fraudulent evasion of duty under s170(2) can include offences involving tobacco products but also other products.

CPS data does not dis-aggregate the overall number of these offences in which a prosecution commenced in the Magistrates’ courts. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

Some offences in relation to the unlawful sale of tobacco products are prosecuted by trading standards departments and would not be recorded in CPS data.