Sounds like another load of old toot from the Daily Mail to me, but...
IF this story is true and IF the government is really losing £3.6 billion in revenue, why doesn't the government simply reduce the duty on tobacco by a third? Hmm?
Because if they did, then Brits would be far less likely to buy illicit tobacco, the government would not be losing out because, let's face it, they're never going to efficiently clamp down on illegal imports and nobody gets to smoke asbestos and dead flies. Not to mention the additional savings in not having to spend so much on chasing illegal importers of EU baccy etc.
It's a mess of their own making. We're supposed to be a part of the EU. So, if our Belgian buddies can smoke a 50g pack of rolling for 8 or 9 quid, why can't we? Of course, the answer is that no government in the last 30 years has had any backbone - a reduction in tobacco duty would be a very brave step to take and, undoubtedly, a vote loser.
So, despite the common sense, the logic of it and the sense of fair play in levelling the cost of tobacco across the EU, successive governments are simply too scared to do it! Pah!
Cheers
Adam