Passed under former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in 2022, the law aims to ban tobacco sales to anyone born in New Zealand after 2008. The law has been praised by public health experts and anti-smoking advocates, and has inspired a similar policy recently announced in the UK.
But after being sworn in on November 27, Prime Minister Luxon confirmed that New Zealand would repeal the law before it took effect, citing concerns about the growth of the black market.
The leader admitted that taxes on current cigarette sales would also provide a welcome source of revenue for the government , but stressed that this was "not a motivation" to scrap the smoking ban.
Laws passed by the previous government in New Zealand aim to ban the sale of tobacco to anyone born after 2008.
The Health Alliance Aotearoa (the Maori name for New Zealand), a smoking ban campaign group, said repealing the law was an insult to the country.
"This is a huge loss for public health and a major victory for the tobacco industry, whose profits will increase at the expense of Kiwi lives," the group said in a statement.
Prime Minister Luxon said the drug ban would create "opportunities for a black market to emerge, much of it untaxed".
The law, which will come into effect later this year, is designed to reduce the number of people using tobacco products almost immediately.
While the number of adults who smoke in New Zealand is already relatively low, at just 8%, the government has previously envisioned a future where the country is completely smoke-free.
Along with the increased age limit, the law would also cut the number of retailers that can sell tobacco products to a maximum of 600 nationwide, down sharply from the current figure of 6,000.
Source link
Comment (0)