Imperial in new anti-illicit trade compact

Imperial Tobacco says that it has signed a new agreement with the customs authorities in Belgium to help combat illicit trade.

“Belgium is an important country for the movement of illicit tobacco products by criminals due to its location and communication links,” the company said in a note posted on its website.

“The signing of this memorandum of understanding (MoU) builds on existing joint efforts taking place to tackle the problem.

“It renews an existing MoU and also reflects the mutual co-operation set out in the EU-wide agreement signed between Imperial and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) in 2010.”

Kris De Baets, legal and CORA manager for Belgium and Luxembourg, said the illicit trade and especially transit through Belgium was of great concern.

“This agreement enables the authorities to work with us to further tackle the problem,” he said.