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Thai Police Admit Rising Tobacco, Alcohol Taxes Affect Crime Rates


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Posted

Police admit rising tobacco, alcohol taxes affect crime rates

BANGKOK, 25 August 2012 (NNT) - Police Major General Parinya Chansuriya, deputy commander of the Metropolitan Police, believed the recent increase in alcoholic beverage tax would have more pros than cons.

Following the Excise Department’s new tax rate on tobacco and alcoholic beverages, Pol.Maj-Gen Parinya said crimes related to alcohol consumption, such as muggings, robberies, snatch-and-run thefts and rapes might be higher.

People with low income may take random risks, leading to committing of crimes that will give them money to purchase alcohol. However, the deputy commander believed the impact would be small, and might be seen only in certain groups.

The increase in the tax rate on smoking tobacco and alcohol may lead to positive effects in society; for instance, it may lead to a reduction in the number of smokers and drunkards who may finally quit the habits.

Nevertheless, the Metropolitan Police have been instructed to keep a close watch on risk-prone areas to ensure citizens’ safety.

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-- NNT 2012-08-25 footer_n.gif

Posted

A real criminology whiz this guy huh?

If they can't get drunk many crimes will go down surely?

maybe things like street offences, ie: assaults, willful damages, domestics and the like but from my experience major crimes actually go up. Burglaries on liquor and tobacco outlets actually increase as these items become like gold. They are easy to off load and there is always a demand. I know personally about 7 years ago cigarettes and liquor was actually affordable but the Australia Government and state government started imposing hefty taxes on a yearly basis. We could see a definate increase in burglaries and roberies where cigarettes and alcohol were the target. I remember attending 6 burglaries on my shifts alone in one week.

Posted (edited)

A real criminology whiz this guy huh?

If they can't get drunk many crimes will go down surely?

I think the guy is right. When you are addicted, but you still find yourself hungry, and you budget does not allow to do both, thats when people resort to theft. Edited by dcutman
Posted

Shop owner in my village told me that he already has a way around the cigarette tax issue. Alot of shop owners are smarter than the government.Fight fire with fire= corruption

Posted

Commonsence should and will preveil over stupidety,

As the hunger will win over the piosoning of the body and soul.

Best too quite now then later and save your body and your wallet.

These companees are going to be shut down in the near future as

all they are selling is death in a small box or bottle.

The people that are laughing at those who smoke and drink them self's into a disease,

are the people who sell the shit to the people

while sitting on a yacht living a healthy life style.

lets stop there life style by not buying there products.

Posted

Commonsence should and will preveil over stupidety,

As the hunger will win over the piosoning of the body and soul.

Best too quite now then later and save your body and your wallet.

These companees are going to be shut down in the near future as

all they are selling is death in a small box or bottle.

The people that are laughing at those who smoke and drink them self's into a disease,

are the people who sell the shit to the people

while sitting on a yacht living a healthy life style.

lets stop there life style by not buying there products.

Sorry but tax rises don't stop anyone indulging. They'll cut the important stuff 1st. Seen it many time in the UK.

Posted

I concur with chooka, the price goes up and the items that feed the addictions become unaffordable, some will have the strength within themselves to be able to quit, but for those who either cannot or will not give up their favourite addictions, some will turn to crime, breakins at retailers, burgleries and robberies to get the money to feed the addiction, bag snatches etc will rise, thats what has happened in almost every country where such commodities have had taxes added to make them more expensive.

  • Like 1
Posted

Less drinking alcohol means less drunk drivers. it also means less crime which in turn means less people have to buy there way out of it via their trusted BiB. This leads to less tea money and so the police are concerned......... and rightly so. clap2.gifcheesy.gif

Posted

Just out of interest, how does Rape get someone the money to buy some smokes or beers ?

I would have thought that was obvious........... after dirty deed ....steal purse or handbag.

Posted

A real criminology whiz this guy huh?

If they can't get drunk many crimes will go down surely?

maybe things like street offences, ie: assaults, willful damages, domestics and the like but from my experience major crimes actually go up. Burglaries on liquor and tobacco outlets actually increase as these items become like gold. They are easy to off load and there is always a demand. I know personally about 7 years ago cigarettes and liquor was actually affordable but the Australia Government and state government started imposing hefty taxes on a yearly basis. We could see a definate increase in burglaries and roberies where cigarettes and alcohol were the target. I remember attending 6 burglaries on my shifts alone in one week.

You genuinely believe that a 5 baht increase in beer prices is going to start a rise in crime in knocking off bottle shops in Thailand?

Knocking off shops us so infrequent in Thailand it barely registers in the stats.

Posted

Sin taxes are popular with politicians wordwide, they are purely after more money but always claim a trumped up BS moral perogative. Why are they after money, because they are either buying votes or stealing from the Treasury, with politicians it is always about personal enrichment or re-election. Why not just say they want more money and decided to screw the stakeholders most likely to cop the tax increase?

How about taxes on tea money, fraudulent land aquistion, unsubstantiated income and unusual wealth, high-so schools, what about taxing entrenched non-competitive industries run by Oligarch families? What about taxing large suspicious land holdings, or hi-so overseas students and foreign property purchases, or maybe how about actually taxing what is legally meant to be taxed rather than allowing corruption payments to be paid to turn a blind eye?

This tax has no bearing on my life, but when you look at population demographics will it be the rich or poor paying the majority of this tax increase, not hard to do the numbers? So who in reality is being screwed again. You moralists get sucked in every time, it is always about increasing taxes to the lower stratum of society. Every government knows the real money comes from Mr Average as he has the multiplication efect. If it is evil then just ban it, why tax it?

+1 Well said
Posted

Rape? The answer should be obvious. If the fags and booze cost more, and you can't afford the local hooker................

Posted

Jesus! Fags went up 6 baht a packet. Beer, mosts beers that is, didn't go up at all!

What's the issue? Even the hardy will find 6 baht a day, without mugging, theft and rape - maybe a little less rice, or pork, or fish... or a lesser standard of those.

This is one ridiculous statement from the police. But then, when don't the police make ridiculous statements?? ermm.gif

-mel.

You have to remember that few of these police officers were at the front of the queue when the brains were dished out. For the large majority of them, they passed their comprehensive and difficult exams, not by study but by having vibrators stuck up their bottoms and responding to the 'buzz' for multiple choice questions!! Police forces world - wide must have laughed their asses off (excuse the pun). Can you imagine a Thai police officer going home to his wife saying, "Darling I need you to help me prepare for my promotional exams, could you stick this whoppa of my ar*e, I need to do some cramming tonight"!

Posted

Its not a ridiculous statement at all - as several have posted here, in virtually all other countries where the excise on alcohol and tobacco has been increased to "curb the use by making it more expensive", all that happens is that it does reduce some of the usage (probaly those who are on the cusp of giving up or not really hard addicts), but it also increases petty crimes especially, and in extreme cases of course some do turn to crimes with violence to steal larger quantities for the ever present black market (obviously not at this level of increased tax, but it can get worse as the taxes increase the value of the commodity).

Posted (edited)

Its not a ridiculous statement at all - as several have posted here, in virtually all other countries where the excise on alcohol and tobacco has been increased to "curb the use by making it more expensive", all that happens is that it does reduce some of the usage (probaly those who are on the cusp of giving up or not really hard addicts), but it also increases petty crimes especially, and in extreme cases of course some do turn to crimes with violence to steal larger quantities for the ever present black market (obviously not at this level of increased tax, but it can get worse as the taxes increase the value of the commodity).

Smuggling goes up. Maybe lifting a bottle of booze goes up, but i have never read a study to show an increase in armed or unarmed robbery associated with tax increases on booze and fags.

http://m.nber.org//digest/may12/w17709.html

In fact just about every crime stat goes down.

Edited by Thai at Heart
Posted (edited)
coffee1.gif Does that include the Crimes the Police Also commit and the shake downs of foreginers to get the money to support their own habits as well. bah.gifsad.pngermm.gif Edited by jerrysteve
Posted

So then illicit booze, smokes etc, make their way in across the border where they are way cheaper. Then immigration and customs get greater payoffs, nothing is achieved overall and the increase taxes collected, mean diddly squat against the out-of-control Government spending. And the wheel of duplicity, scam, politics and corruption continues to turn. T. i. T. rolleyes.gif

  • Like 1
Posted

I just hope cops leave their service pistol or revolver whenever they go into a restaurant to have a drink. I have seen this only too often.

Posted

So if raising taxes increases the crime rate, it must follow that reducing taxes reduces crime. So how about it Govt. you now know how to reduce the crime rate - want to something constructive for once - not likely.thumbsup.gif

Posted

OK, I am quit surprised to find, after further research, that yes, increased taxes/prices on alcohol, does in western cultures, result in reduced crime levels... I wonder if the same would hold true here - note that there was a difference between the US/UK/Australia, and the Scandinavian country's results. The full PDF is available on line...

Titled -

Alcohol pricing and criminal harm: a rapid evidence assessment of the published research literature

Authors -

Andrew Booth- School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR), University of Sheffield

Petra Meier - School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR), University of Sheffield

Joanna Shapland - School of Law, Sheffield

Ruth Wong - School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR), University of Sheffield

Suzy Paisley - School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR), University of Sheffield

Overall crime: Taxation decreases were associated with increased overall crime rates, and taxation increases with decreased rates of crime.

Violent crime: While taxation increases in Australia and the US led to reductions in violent crime, studies on taxation decreases in Scandinavia found no significant effects on violent crime. Several correlational studies,bincluding studies from the UK, supported an association of cheaper alcohol with higher violent crime rates. With two exceptions, modelling studies estimate that higher prices were associated with reductions in violent crime.

Sexual assault: Most studies are based on modelling, which consistently links higher alcohol prices to lower rates of sexual violence. This finding was supported by one study that analysed the effects of actual price variations.

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