▶ Your Answer :
The reading passage contends that there are
a couple of advantages to increasing special tax on tobacco. On the other
hands, the lecture brings up several points that contradict this argument.
First, the lecturer argues that increasing
the tax has no impact on young people’s smoking. This is because the more
number of young people could buy it in the black market. The research says that
the higher revenue of tobacco is, the more black markets is. Actually,
smugglers sold cigarettes cheap and do not check their age, so young people buy
it although it is illegal. This casts doubt the reading passage’s claim that raising
the tax on tobacco will reduce that young people will start smoking.
Second, according to the lecture, higher
tax is not benefit to the environment. The reason is that the less number of tobacco
is sold because of its higher price. Therefore, few people want to buy it and
sales volume will be reduced. It would also decline the whole revenue of cigarettes.
Thus, government could not implement their policy of providing the environment.
This refutes the reading passage’s assertion that a higher tax will help the
government lessen damage on the environment.
The final point by the lecturer is that
increasing the tax is less likely to relieve poverty. In fact, many tobacco
companies make jobs such as agriculture, manufacturing the tobacco. Therefore,
if cigarettes company lose their position because of a higher revenue, the job
in the company would be disappeared. This could make poverty and poor people’s situation
severely. This counters the reading passage’s argument that the increasing the
tax can be used to relieve poverty. |