The Livery Newsletter and Gazette Issue 28 Winter 2017 | Page 17

The lunch was deliciously catered by Mark Grove
and his team at Cook & Butler and we cracked
along at a goodly pace. Our guests were admirably
introduced by Liveryman Fran Morrison and our
Principal Guest, Tim Wonnacott gave a generous and
very humorous reply to which I responded initially
by drenching
poor on
Tim tobacco
in a glass
of water - he was
Tobacco Manufacturers’ Association survey
2017: question
prices
very kind about it (sorry Tim!). I was very pleased
to show off the newly found Livery Grant of Arms
TMA Director General Giles Roca says: “Analysis
and Letters Patent which have been missing for many
by Oxford Economics indicates that banning small
years - our Clerk tenaciously sought them out, and
tobacco packs will cost HM Treasury £2.1 billion in
the new Immediate Past Master, Chris Allen, and his
its first year. The figures in our survey tend to show
IPM, Mark Gower-Smith have funded a beautiful re-
things moving in that direction.”
presentation and they are now resplendent in frames
carved with tobacco leaves (or close to); Sandra also
The tobacco company members of the TMA -
located a huge banner not seen since 1985 and Angus
British American Tobacco, Imperial and JTI - all
Menzies, Clerk to the Master Mariners and never shy
work very hard to combat the illicit trade in the
of a challenge saw to it that it was displayed on the
UK and globally, often in concert with government
Quarterdeck.
authorities. They’re right to do so, as the huge scale
of the global illegal trade means the illegal traffickers Whilst all this was going on, apparently biblical-
are effectively the fourth biggest tobacco ‘company’
style downpours were being had all over London
in the world.
- oblivious to all that drama we ended our lunch
and trooped back to the quarterdeck where Coffee,
Has regulation also played a part? Almost half the
Cigars, and
awaited
us publicity
(I did mention
BAT Cognac
Anti-Illicit
Trade
image that
smokers surveyed (45%) said plain packaging and the
our Livery enjoyed dining on the High C’s..) and
bans on small tobacco packs tempted them to buy
which seemed to hit the mark – Liveryman Jemma
illegal tobacco - significantly more than the 31% who
Freeman had kindly provided the torpedo cigars
said these did not tempt them.
and had had them placed in souvenir tubes with our
Crest despite
emblazoned
on it. efforts,
Several a of big
us problem
also sported
TMA Director General Giles Roca says: “Analysis
But
these major
a limited edition
Livery
Smoking
- originally
by Oxford Economics indicates that banning small
remains.
The TMA’s
latest
survey hat
suggests
that, in
conceived
as
a
sort
of
shooting
hat,
it
serves
its
tobacco packs will cost HM Treasury £2.1 billion in
the UK at least, consumers will continue
to drift
purpose the
so well
as a “team” hat, traffickers
that of the unless
twenty they
its first year. The figures in our survey tend to show
towards
under-the-counter
ordered, less
but hammered
one remained
by the and
close
of the day!
things moving in that direction.”
become
by taxes
reg