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Cigarette butts consistently rank among the most littered items both locally and globally. Cigarette butts not disposed of properly pollute our water and soil with toxic chemicals like formaldehyde, nicotine, arsenic, lead, copper, chromium, cadmium and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Discarded cigarette filters can degrade into microplastics and worsen plastic pollution. Growing concerns about the environmental impact of cigarette butt litter and the substantial clean-up cost have prompted France and Spain to adopt the “polluter pays” principle. In France, an organisation funded by tobacco firms was set up in 2021 to finance clean-up operations, install street ashtrays and run public service advertising campaigns. The target is to reduce cigarette butt litter by 40 per cent in six years. New regulations in Spain make tobacco companies foot the bill for cigarette butt removal. The British government is also exploring similar “polluter pays” measures to cover the £40 million (S$65 million) annual cost of cleaning up cigarette butt litter. For too long, tobacco companies have been privatising profits but socialising harm, which is borne by people and the environment. It is time for Singapore to make the tobacco industry pay for the clean-up of their toxic products.