The Thai government has plans of appealing a court victory by tobacco giant Philip Morris. The victory had allowed the company to keep larger health warnings off their cigarette packs for the local market.

Last Friday, the Central Administrative Court ruled a temporary suspension of a new health ministry regulation increasing tobacco warning labels to 85% of the visible pack. Currently, tobacco companies place warning labels that cover 55% of the cigarette pack.

Consequently, the Thai unit of Philip Morris International Inc filed a lawsuit against the Public Health Ministry on June 26. The lawsuit had asked the Administrative Court to abolish the warning label regulation. The Thai Tobacco Trade Association, which represents more than 1,400 retailers nationwide, also filed a similar case. The trade association argued that the ministry's regulation was "unconstitutional."

The Public Health Ministry regulation would have taken effect on October 2 unless the Administrative Court's suspension has been lifted.

In a statement, a spokeswoman for Philip Morris Thailand, Onanong Pratakphiriya, said that the health ministry failed to consult related parties in the tobacco industry before imposing the new regulation.