British Parliament Votes To Ban Branding On Cigarette Packs

By William James and Andrew Osborn LONDON, March 11 (Reuters) - Britain's parliament approved legislation on Wednesday to ban branding on cigarette packs, drawing immediate threats of legal action from the country's $29 billion tobacco industry. Aimed at improving public health and cutting the number of child smokers, the measure is likely to crimp tobacco company profits and emulates Australia, which in 2012 enacted a law forcing cigarettes to be sold in plain olive green packaging with images showing the damaging effects of smoking. British lawmakers (MPs) effectively ended years of political debate, private lobbying and public consultation by passing the legislation by a margin of 367 votes to 113. "We want all children in our country to grow up free from the burden of disease that tobacco brings," Public Health Minister Jane Ellison said in a statement, adding that the legislation should come into force by May 2016. The proposal must still be debated and passed by the upper house of parliament before becoming law. Imperial Tobacco Group said that if the measure became law the firm would be "left with no choice but to defend our legal rights in court." The new rules would initially take effect in England only, though the Welsh government has said it will follow suit and Northern Ireland and Scotland are considering a similar step. Tobacco is responsible for 6 million deaths a year globally and the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that number could rise beyond 8 million by 2030. As well as causing cancer and other chronic respiratory conditions, smoking is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease, the world's No.