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Tobacco displays banned as New Zealand heads towards a smokefree future - Hon Tariana Turia

Tariana Turia

Friday 15 July 2011, 9:54AM

By Tariana Turia

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[The] passing of the Smoke-free Environments (Controls and Enforcement) Amendment Bill makes tobacco displays a thing of the past as New Zealand increasingly moves towards a future without tobacco.

“This is a great moment for New Zealand. This Bill closes one of the last loopholes the tobacco industry uses to prey on our young people.

“It introduces a complete ban on the display of tobacco products and references to tobacco products in trading names.

“Retail displays, innocently positioned alongside everyday confectionary and sweets, are a key component of making cigarettes attractive to recruit young smokers. We’re not going to tolerate this any longer,” Minister Turia explains.

The Bill also increases the fines for selling tobacco products to under 18s. The maximum penalty for this offence will now be $10,000 for a business compared to $2000 in the past.

It also increases the powers of Smokefree Enforcement Officers, enabling them to impose instant fines of up to $1000 for sales to those under the age of 18 years.

“Any tobacco products for sale must be completely concealed from public view and we will be able to fine retailers immediately where they are found selling tobacco illegally to minors.

“No longer will people go into a dairy for milk and a newspaper only to be confronted by a wall of cigarettes. These ‘power walls’ not only encourage young people to try smoking, they also make it harder on those attempting to quit,” Minister Turia adds.

As well as targeting the display of products, raising the fines for selling to children, and increasing the powers of Smoke-free Enforcement Officers, the Bill also addresses exclusive product-supply arrangements - clarifying and extending the ban on such ‘covert-sponsorship’ activities.

“This Government is serious about reducing the harm caused by smoking. Our dairies, supermarkets and convenience stores provide a vital and greatly appreciated service to New Zealand communities. Tobacco is not a normal nor a healthy consumer product, and it will be less and less a part of this picture.”

The Government does also recognize that removing retail displays will have cost implications for retailers. The Ministry of Health will be seeking input from the retail sector to identify ways to minimise compliance costs and implement the changes with minimal disruption to businesses.

These changes will come into force in July next year, giving most retailers 12 months to make the changes needed. There is scope in the legislation for some exemptions for a further 12 months for those smaller retailers facing high costs.



Background
· Less than 20% of New Zealanders smoke and 80% of those say they wish they’d never started.* In supermarkets, tobacco sales dropped 15% following the 2010 tax increase.**
· The Bill was passed into law on 14 July 2011 with 117 votes in favour, and 3 votes opposed.

The Bill:
· provides for the removal of tobacco displays in retail outlets
· prohibits the display of trading names where these include words or phrases that effectively advertise tobacco products, for example “John’s Discount Cigarette Store”
· provides an ‘instant fine’ infringement notice scheme to enforce the prohibition on the sale of tobacco products to people under 18 years
· helps enforce the law by making relevant contracts and agreements void if they prevent or limit compliance with the Smoke-free Environments legislation.

*2009 Tobacco Use Survey
**http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/55499/tobacco-sales-down-since-rise-in-excise