LONDON - Britain is likely to pass a tougher tobacco control bill on Monday that would bar cigarette makers from using their own logos on products and instead require all manufacturers to use a uniform design.
The proposed legislation aims to ensure that the package design of tobacco products highlights images and words that emphasise the health hazards of smoking, thereby reducing the number of smokers.
However, the proposal has been met with fierce antagonism from the British tobacco industry, which decries it as a violation of the right to freedom of expression.
Tobacco makers have threatened to bring a lawsuit against the government, insisting that the act be repealed.
Products with the envisaged design will be referred to as "plain packs." Tobacco makers will not be allowed to print logos or other visual elements, and fonts used in brand names and other details will also be standardized.
The Australian government enacted the first such measure in the world in December 2012. Earlier this year, Ireland passed a similar law.
In Britain, the bill passed the House of Commons on Wednesday.
It is highly likely that the House of Lords will pass the bill on Monday.
If the outcome is successful, the law will be enacted in May 2016.
In England alone, every year 80,000 people die of smoking-related diseases, which have taken a massive toll on the public health care system, according to the British government. In Britain, medical care is free of charge in principle.
Japan Tobacco Inc. (JT), which holds more than 40 per cent of the market share in Britain, acquired Gallaher Group, a major tobacco company there.
"If the legislation is enacted, the impact will be huge," said a JT spokesman. "Tobacco farmers all over the world will also be affected."
British American Tobacco, the British maker of such famous brands as Lucky Strike, issued a statement saying that the company plans to take legal action against the government.
According to the company, the proposed regulation also violates the European Union's trademark law and other legislation.
Philip Morris, the US tobacco firm behind the Marlboro brand, has voiced doubts as to the effects of such regulations in Australia.
The company said the number of cigarettes sold in Australia has not changed significantly since the plain pack law's enactment, but the black market for tobacco has expanded.
The tobacco industry lost its lawsuit challenging the Australian plain pack law.
As a result, similar developments in Britain are being closely watched.
(Isozumi is a correspondent based in London.)