Tobacco: manufacture, presentation and sale of products (recast of Directives 89/622/EEC, 92/41/EEC, 90/239/EEC)

LEGISLATIVE ACT : Commission Decision 2003/641/EC on the use of colour photographs or other illustrations as health warnings on tobacco packages. CONTENT : this Decision establishes rules for the use on tobacco packages of colour photographs or other illustrations to depict and explain the health consequences of smoking. The Decision shall apply to those Member States that decide to use colour photographs or illustrations together with the additional warnings required by Directive 2001/37/EC on the packages of some or all types of tobacco products, except for packages containing tobacco for oral use and other smokeless tobacco. Where Member States require health warnings in the form of colour photographs or other illustrations, these shall be in accordance with the rules established by this Decision. IMPLEMENTATION : where Member States decide to require the use of combined warnings on tobacco packages, they shall adopt and publish the provisions necessary to comply with this Decision. They shall apply those provisions at the earliest from 1 October 2004. Those provisions shall provide for adequate transitional periods in order to allow for the necessary changes in the production and packaging process for tobacco products and for the disposal of stocks, in particular as regards small and medium enterprises.�