New law to make New Zealand smoke free

New Zealand bans smoking - 9th January 2023

New Zealand's passed a radical new law banning cigarette sales to the next generation. Those born after the first of January 2009 will never be legally allowed to buy cigarettes in the country.

Proponents of the measure say allowing fewer people to be addicted won't only reduce deaths from lung cancer, but also cut government spending on treatments for tobacco related health issues. Ayesha Verrall, New Zealand's associate health minister, said, 'Thousands of people will live longer, healthier lives and the health system will be 5 billion New Zealand dollars better off.'

New regulations also accompany the new law, limiting how much nicotine tobacco products can contain and where they can be sold. Only specialist stores will be permitted to continue to sell tobacco products while corner stores and supermarkets will be banned from selling them. This will reduce the number of tobacco purchase points from 6,000 to 600.

New Zealand already has a relatively low number of smokers. Only 8 percent of the population smokes down from 9.4 percent in 2021. However, certain groups such as Maori, have higher rates (19.9 percent). The government plans are to reduce the overall number to just 5 percent by 2025.

Vaping products remain untouched by the legislation. Currently vaping is becoming more popular especially among young people. Vaping numbers rose 2.1 percent last year in the country.

Some fear that banning cigarettes will lead to more organised crime with illegal trafficking of tobacco products becoming more frequent as the ban comes into effect. Lobbyist for convenience stores, Sunny Kaushal said, 'there's going to be a crime wave. Gangs and criminals will fill the gap.'

Health minister Verrall said allowing tobacco companies to profit off an addictive harmful product 'is disgusting… We have more regulations…on the safety of the sale of a sandwich than on a cigarette.'