Australia plans to tighten policies on smoking and e-cigarettes

Australia plans to tighten policies on electronic cigarettes and smoking, according to The Guardian's report.

Although Australia has been at the forefront of anti-tobacco policies for many years, such as pioneering plain packaging, Federal Health Minister Mark Butler has said that the previous government was "sleeping" as the popularity of electronic cigarettes soared.

Usage of electronic cigarettes in Australia doubled between 2016 and 2019. According to a recent population survey conducted by the state government, almost one-third of the population aged 16-24 in New South Wales had tried electronic cigarettes by last year, which is higher than the 15% reported three years ago.

To help address this issue, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) will initiate public consultation on modifications to import laws, pre-market assessments for e-cigarettes, labeling, advertising, identification of flavors, and products containing nicotine. According to officials, many nicotine-containing products are inaccurately labeled as nicotine-free.

In Australia, it is illegal to sell, supply, or possess electronic cigarettes or any liquid containing nicotine without a doctor's prescription. However, suppliers have been circumventing this issue by removing "nicotine" from the ingredient list, even if their products do contain nicotine.

According to the New South Wales Department of Health, over the past 18 months they have seized more than 157,000 nicotine-containing electronic cigarettes in raids.

The government plans to further tighten policies on combustible cigarettes. In addition to other measures, cigarette manufacturers are required to print health warnings on every cigarette, such as "smoking kills," and produce less appealing colored cigarettes. Each cigarette pack should have an added health promotion page, and advertising regulations will be updated to include e-cigarette products. The government also hopes to ban flavored cigarettes, including menthol varieties.

The proposed measure aims to help Australia reduce its smoking rates to below 10% by 2025 and to 5% or lower by 2030.

Public consultations on reform will open on January 16th.

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