Selling cigarettes to an under-age person has cost a
Clevedon trader thousands of pounds.
Kandiah Mohanakumaran, the proprietor of KMS News in Old St,
Clevedon did not attend North Somerset Magistrates Court on 3
October but pleaded guilty by post. He was fined £1,070 for the
offence of selling tobacco to a person under the age of 18 and was
ordered to pay £1,250 costs.
The law restricts the sale of tobacco to the under 18s. To
establish whether this was being complied with locally, a 'test
purchase' exercise was carried out using volunteers aged 15 and 16
years of age.
Cllr Peter Bryant, North Somerset Council's executive member for
trading standards said he was shocked that retail multiples and
small independent retailers alike showed little regard for the
reasonable precautions which could prevent access to tobacco by
young children, such as only selling after requesting ID. This was
despite advice having previously been provided by trading standards
officers on the training of staff and how to identify under-age
purchasers.
He said: "While I am delighted with the outcome of the
prosecution, I was astonished that so many local businesses had not
heeded officers' advice, with some selling to under-age volunteers
twice in one day. Stopping sales of tobacco to children is
everyones business and we will continue to ensure young people are
protected with ongoing robust enforcement.
"The detrimental effects of smoking, especially among the young,
are well known.
"Trading Standards will continue to strengthen their stance on
tobacco control and particularly the illicit trade in counterfeit
cigarettes as we know only too well that these products often
contain uncontrolled levels of dangerous compounds."