Vaping crackdown will jeopardise Smokefree 2025 goal

The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is warning against additional measures aimed at making vaping less accessible which will result in more people continuing to smoke rather than switching to safer alternatives.

Taxpayers’ Union Deputy Campaigns Manager, Connor Molloy, says:

“While we share the concerns of many around the sale and supply of vaping products to minors and support the increased penalties for doing so, we are concerned about the impact further restrictions on the accessibility of smoking alternatives will have on those seeking to switch to a safer alternative such as vaping.

“Banning advertising will make it even more difficult for vape retailers to market their products as a safer alternative to cigarettes meaning these people are less likely to be persuaded to switch to the option with less tar and less tax. As it stands the rules are already too strict when it comes to the promotion of vaping products with absurd rules making it illegal for a store attendant to suggest vape products to a person trying to buy cigarettes.

“Reducing the amount of nicotine in vapes will further limit the appeal of this safer alternative to smokers meaning more people continue to smoke instead. Furthermore, the additional restrictions on disposable vapes will make it more costly and inconvenient for a current smoker to try out vaping first before fully committing to a refillable unit.

“The decision to limit the number of stores to only 600 will leave many communities without a nicotine retailer, except the local gang who will be selling full-strength, tax-free and unregulated tobacco to anyone who wants it – no ID needed. This proposal will add more costs, both time and money, to smokers wanting to switch to vaping products. For many, the extra costs will be too much and they will simply revert to the tobacco black market that already supplies 1 in 8 cigarettes smoked in New Zealand."