New law to make New Zealand smoke free

No smoking in New Zealand - 9th January 2023

New Zealand's banning cigarettes. It's made a new law which stops people buying cigarettes. It's mainly for people who were born after 1 January 2009.

Many people agree with this new law. They think it'll cause less tobacco addiction and save lives. The health system will also save 5 billion New Zealand dollars.

The new rules also control the amount of nicotine in tobacco products. And they make it harder to buy them. It's illegal for corner shops and supermarkets to sell cigarettes or tobacco. Only 600 special shops in the country are allowed to sell them.

Only 8 percent of New Zealand's population are smokers. This is a decrease from 9.4 percent in 2021. But in some communities rates are higher. Nearly 20 percent of the Maori community are smokers. The government's goal is for the number of smokers to go below 5 percent by 2025.

The new laws don't include electronic cigarette products. 'Vaping' is more popular with young people. 8.3 percent of adults now vape every day - an increase of 2.1 percent in 2022.

Some corner shop owners are against the new law. They say it'll create an illegal tobacco business. They worry that gangs and criminals will benefit from this.