> In the Japanese case they don't want to imperil the profits from JTI (Japan Tobacco). Nationalizing the tobacco industry is hardly necessary to create a conf

> In the Japanese case they don't want to imperil the profits from JTI (Japan Tobacco). Nationalizing the tobacco industry is hardly necessary to create a conflict of interest here. In Ireland a pack of cigarettes costs €14, of which €11 goes to the State [0], €1 to the retailer [1], and €2 to the tobacco company (of which a pretty decent €1 is profit [2]). Giving the extra euro to the State wouldn't change incentives that much here, even assuming they could run a business with the efficiency of the current multinational giants in the industry. [0] https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/almost-80-of-price-of-packet-of-cigarettes-is-tax-and-excise-duty-donnelly-1.4380161 https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/almost-80... [1] https://ash.org.uk/media-and-news/press-releases-media-and-news/ash-research-shows-corner-shops-dont-need-tobacco-to-be-profitable/ https://ash.org.uk/media-and-news/press-releases-media-and-n... (UK figures, should be close) [2] https://csimarket.com/Industry/Industry_Profitability.php?ind=508 https://csimarket.com/Industry/Industry_Profitability.php?in...