The authorities in Gong'an County, which is a part of Hubei Province, told civil servants and teachers to smoke 230,000 packs of the locally-made Hubei brand each year. Those who did not smoke enough, or used brands from other provinces or overseas, faced a fine or even getting fired from their jobs. But the government has now backed down from its policy after a story in a local newspaper generated criticism.
Chen Nianzu, a member of the cigarette market supervision team in Gong'an County told the Global Times newspaper that "the regulation will boost the local economy via the cigarette tax". The paper said the measure was perhaps an attempt to shore up Hubei's cigarette brands against tough competition from cigarettes produced in neighbouring Hunan province.
On Tuesday, the local government's website published a statement saying "We decided to remove this edict" without further elaboration. (pi)