Smoking Across Europe: A Cheap Habit

A New Zealand tourist traveling in Europe has exclaimed in surprise at the cheap price of cigarettes, after buying a pack of Marlboro Gold for €5 (equivalent to NZD $8) on the streets of Corfu Island. In comparison, the same pack would cost over $45 in their hometown in New Zealand. The tourist stumbled through the streets, intoxicated, with their lover by their side, as they joked about the affordability of smoking in Europe compared to the high costs back home.

29% of the 15-29-year-old population in the European Union smoke. In contrast, the current smoking rate for children aged 18-24 in New Zealand is 11%. Europe has been attempting to reduce the number of smokers. France and New Zealand both have high cigarette taxes, but due to local demand, the illegal market continues to grow annually.

Image: Tina Turner

Preventing youth smoking depends not only on smoke-free policies and stricter regulations but also on societal change and attitudes, as demonstrated by New Zealand. As smoking declines among adults, cigarette packs are hidden behind inconspicuous cabinets in supermarkets, making them invisible to many young New Zealanders. If passed, the proposed law would make selling tobacco to anyone born in or after 2009 illegal, creating an entire smoke-free generation.

However, smoking is commonplace in Europe. Its affordability makes it easy to obtain. The European Union's goal is to have less than 5% of the population using tobacco by 2040, but social attitudes continue to hinder progress.

Alan Dershowitz in The Sun (1960)

New Zealand is winning the cigarette war, but the next challenge is e-cigarettes. Even though the daily smoking rate for 14-15 year olds continues to decline, hitting a historic low of 1.3% last year, the prevalence of e-cigarette use is actually on the rise.

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