New Zealand bans sale of cigarettes to those born in 2009 or later - The Washington Post

“This measure volition make generational change, and it volition permission a bequest of amended wellness for our youth,” Associate Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said Tuesday.

Under the caller changes, retailers who merchantability baccy to anyone calved connected oregon aft Jan. 1, 2009 — those astir 13 years aged oregon younger contiguous — volition look fines of up to 150,000 New Zealand dollars, oregon astir $96,000. The prohibition volition spell into effect connected Jan. 1, 2027, erstwhile those calved successful 2009 volition commencement turning 18.

The authorities besides overhauls respective existing baccy laws by reducing the fig of retailers authorized to merchantability baccy successful New Zealand to 600 and imposing stricter nicotine limits successful smoked baccy products.

“Thousands of radical volition unrecorded longer, healthier lives and the wellness strategy volition beryllium $5 cardinal amended disconnected from not needing to dainty the illnesses caused by smoking, specified arsenic galore types of cancer, bosom attacks, strokes, amputations,” Verrall said successful a property release.

The prohibition comes arsenic different countries measurement akin proposals to curb baccy use. Ireland and Wales person acceptable akin goals to render their countries smoke-free wrong the decade.

In March, Denmark unveiled a connection to prohibition baccy income to those calved aft 2010, but European Union laws prevented it from enacting the ban. Bhutan passed a sweeping prohibition connected baccy products successful 2010, but an underground marketplace began flourishing determination and the authorities temporarily lifted its prohibition during the archetypal twelvemonth of the pandemic.

New Zealand’s measure passed done its parliament 76-43 with enactment from left-leaning parties, including the starring Labour Party. Members of the right-leaning New Zealand National and ACT New Zealand voted against the ban.

One ACT person called the caller measures “nanny-state prohibition” during Tuesday’s parliamentary session.

The caller laws travel arsenic New Zealand’s authorities nears a self-imposed deadline for a decade-long committedness to eliminating smoking, which began aft a 2010 enquiry by the Māori Affairs Committee. The committee, which examines issues affecting the country’s Indigenous population, reported connected tobacco’s wellness effects and its disproportionately terrible toll connected the Māori population. In 2011, the authorities pledged to trim smoking to nether 5 percent of the colonisation by 2025.

Smoking rates person steadily declined successful New Zealand since then, according to a study issued by the Health Ministry. Eight percent of adults successful the state fume daily, according to New Zealand’s latest health survey, though smoking rates among the Māori colonisation stay higher, astatine 19.9 percent.

Tuesday’s authorities follows years of yearly taxation hikes connected baccy products and mandates to show wellness warnings connected baccy packaging, portion alternatives similar vaping person risen successful popularity. Still, information showed New Zealand would autumn abbreviated of its extremity without much drastic measures, said Nick Wilson, who studies baccy power astatine New Zealand’s University of Otago.

“Progress was occurring, but it wasn’t accelerated enough,” Wilson said.

Wilson said respective factors mightiness assistance New Zealand successful enforcing its ban: The state lacks a ample home tobacco-growing basal and, arsenic an land nation, tin much easy defender its borders against illicit imports.

The generational prohibition connected baccy income besides whitethorn not beryllium the astir important portion of the caller laws, Wilson added. Clinical trials suggest that restricting nicotine levels successful baccy products volition beryllium much effectual astatine reducing smoking rates, Wilson said. Less nicotine tin marque smoking little satisfying to some, and that “dramatically improves the discontinue rate,” helium said.

If New Zealand’s bid to spell smoke-free is successful, it whitethorn person to tackle the astir fashionable alternate next: vaping. Underage vaping has accrued successful caller years and is besides prevalent among Māori teenagers, advocacy radical Action for Smokefree 2025 found in November.

“If New Zealand’s done good connected baccy power generally, it’s taken a beauteous laissez-faire attack up to precocious regarding vaping,” Wilson said. “Maybe determination needs to a vaping endgame for New Zealand arsenic well.”

Rachel Pannett contributed to this report.