Cigarette packet health warnings to be in Irish

A PRIMARY school teacher has won her High Court bid to have health warnings on cigarette packets sold here published in Irish as well as English and also published in the same size. The warnings and other notices are currently printed in English only.

Proceedings brought by Caitríona Uí Riain against the Minister for Health and Children and the State were settled yesterday on the basis of the State agreeing to a mandatory order requiring it to amend the relevant law by October 1 next to provide health warning and information notices on cigarette packets be published, in the same size, in Irish and English.

The State also agreed to the making of a court declaration it must amend the relevant law here to comply with a European directive — Directive 2001/37/EC — in relation to health warnings, and ensure the languages are treated equally in accordance with the provisions of that directive.

In proceedings conducted in Irish, the settlement of the action on those terms was announced to Mr Justice Iarfhlaith Ó Neill by Seamus Ó Tuathail SC, for Ms Uí Riain, with an address at Ryefield, Virginia, Co Cavan, and working as a teacher at a primary school in the Rathcairn Gaeltacht in Co Meath.

Gerard Hogan SC, for the respondents, said he was consenting to the settlement. The judge said he was pleased agreement had been reached and made the declaration and orders sought, including an order for costs to Ms Uí Riain.

In her action, the teacher claimed a statutory instrument of 2003, intended to give effect to the 2001 directive, did not properly implement the directive regarding the information appearing on tobacco products. She argued it did not require the health warnings and other information to be printed in Irish in the same size, with clear priority for the Irish language as the first official language. The warning and notices are printed only in English.

Where a State has more than one official language, the directive requires that state to provide health warnings in each of those languages on cigarette packets and also requires the warnings be of the same size. Where a state has two official languages, the general health warnings must account for 32% of the most visible external surface of the packet.

The directive provides that notices on cigarette packets about tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide levels shall be printed on one side of the packet in the official language of the member state and, where there are two official languages, those notices shall cover at least 12% of the surface.