The fate of small cigarette packs and menthol products are still hanging in the balance after a key parliamentary vote on new rules within the European Union Tobacco Products Directive (EUTPD) was pushed back by a month.

The delay of the Plenary Vote to October 8 gave the industry “further impetus to remonstrate against the reforms,” Imperial Tobacco’s UK communications manager Gayatri Barua-Howe said.

In its current form the EUTPD seeks to ban the sale of cigarette 10s and roll-your-own pouches of less than 40g, moves which if enforced could “dent retailer’s profits and further exacerbate the illicit trade problem here in the UK,” she said.

Pictorial health warnings could also be increased to cover 75% of the entire packs and electronic cigarettes could be classified as medical products.

Retailers against the reforms should sign the FOREST petition www.NoThankEU.com Barua-Howe added.