Health experts shocked: that’s why New Zealand won’t ban smoking

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The leading cause of preventable deaths in New Zealand: smoking. To prevent young people from doing this, a new law was introduced in 2022. This would have banned the sale of cigarettes to anyone born after 2008 next year. But the new government wants to lift the smoking ban to finance tax cuts. This turnaround has been sharply criticized by health experts.

‘We are shocked and outraged. “This is an incredible step backwards in a world-leading, absolutely excellent health policy,” Richard Edwards, a tobacco control researcher and public health expert at the University of Otago, told the BBC.

Loss of income and black market

“Most health organizations in New Zealand are shocked by what the government has done and are calling on them to withdraw,” Edwards said. The law adopted last year was highly praised internationally.

The measures include limiting the number of tobacco shops and reducing the nicotine content in cigarettes. According to the BBC, model calculations show that the smoke-free law could save up to 5,000 lives every year.

But the smoking ban was met with resistance from some New Zealand business associations. Owners of newsagents and convenience stores criticized the loss of income – despite government subsidies. New Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (53) also argued that a ban would lead to a black market for tobacco. On Saturday, the new Finance Minister Nicola Willis (42) announced the abolition of the smoking ban – completely unexpected for health experts.

“Relentless attack”

“The suggestion that tax cuts would be paid for by people who continue to smoke is absolutely shocking,” Robert Beaglehole, chairman of New Zealand’s Action for Smokefree 2025 committee, told radio network Pacific Media Network.

The national Māori health organization Hāpai Te Hauora was also furious. According to the BBC, she described the decision as a “ruthless attack on the health and well-being of all New Zealanders.”

Despite the planned abolition of the law, the country continues to pursue the goal of reducing the number of smokers to 5 percent by 2025 and ultimately eliminating smoking completely. About 8 percent of the adult population currently smokes; more than 80,000 people quit last year. (gs)

Source: Blick