AI Is Helping Gangs Grow Illicit Tobacco Networks, EU Auditor Warns
Nearly one in 10 cigarettes sold in the European Union is illicit, and auditors say fragmented enforcement is letting crime groups profit.
- On Tuesday, the European Court of Auditors reported that the European Union is failing to track illegal tobacco trade, which costs public budgets an estimated €13 billion annually.
- Organized crime has shifted production into the European Union to exploit uneven national legislation, with factories discovered in Belgium, Spain, Poland, and Romania during fieldwork.
- Nearly one in ten cigarettes sold in the European Union is illicit; newer products like Vapes account for about 13 per cent of market value, while illicit non-cigarette tobacco reaches nearly 21,000 tonnes.
- ECA member Petri Sarvamaa stated the Commission and Member States "must up their game to fight criminal activity head-on," while the Commission called tobacco fraud "an ongoing and complex challenge for the EU."
- Criminal organizations exploit Information-sharing gaps between Member States using Artificial intelligence to identify jurisdictional weaknesses, yet the Commission remains unwilling to establish a coordinated EU-wide monitoring system.
14 Articles
14 Articles
About 10% of cigarettes smoked in the EU come either from an illegal factory or from smuggling.The efforts of the Member States to combat this scourge are now too "dispersed", according to the European Court of Auditors.
The European Court of Auditors warns of the mistakes and "insufficient efforts" still being made by the authorities to curb these actions.
EU lags behind in fight against illicit tobacco, report found
The European Union is failing to collect data on illegal tobacco trade as uneven country legislation creates gaps where criminal groups can jump in, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) found in a report published Tuesday (8 September). Illegal tobacco trade makes tobacco products cheaper and more accessible, and costs the EU and its member states over €13bn each year, according to EU Commission estimates. “That is €13bn that never reaches our s…
Reformatorisch Dagblad
welingelichtekringen.nlWithin the EU, there is a lack of a unified approach to illegal tobacco production and trade, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) concludes in a report published on Tuesday. Legislation against illegal tobacco trade varies by Member State, which criminal networks exploit. "Due to high profits, relatively low risks, traditionally lenient penalties, and a low chance of detection, illegal tobacco products are particularly attractive to criminal or…
A report by the European Court of Auditors reveals that organised crime groups have strategically relocated Ukraine's production to the EU in order to shorten the supply chain and have more direct access to consumers The illegal tobacco trade causes losses of around €13 billion in annual revenue for EU and Member State budgets due to the circumvention of customs duties, VAT and excise duties, according to a report by the European Court of Audito…
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