Measure
Duty rates on all tobacco products will increase by Retail Price Index (RPI) plus 2%. The new rate will be set at the larger of an amount equal to 16.5%of the retail price plus £316.70 per thousand cigarettes or £422.80 per 1,000 cigarettes.
Duty rates on hand-rolling tobacco will increase by RPI plus 12%. The new rate will be set at £412.32 per kilogram.
Manufacturers, importers, distributors, retailers and consumers of tobacco products.
These changes will take effect from 6pm on 22 November 2023.
The government has cited its commitment to maintaining high tobacco duty rates and ensuring that tobacco duties continue to contribute to government revenues as the reason for introducing this measure.
It is anticipated that the increased duty due on the production and import of tobacco products will be passed onto UK consumers. The measure will, therefore, support the government’s public health aim of reducing the prevalence of smoking by changing the consumption habits of smokers, which will, in turn, reduce the cost to the NHS of treating smoking-related illness.