Tougher Regulations Proposed in Australia to Combat E-Cigarettes

According to a report from the Daily Mail on September 12th, the Australian Health Minister, Mark Butler, has announced plans to introduce stricter regulations to combat traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes. He stated that tobacco control legislation is the "crucial" next step in combating tobacco and nicotine addiction, with the goal of reducing the national smoking rate to 5% by 2030.

If approved, graphic warnings on cigarette packaging will be updated and extended to individual cigarettes; additives such as mint flavor may be prohibited; e-cigarettes will be subject to advertising restrictions in order to eradicate their use.

As the Minister of Health, he believes that Australia has started to relax in its fight against tobacco addiction after pushing for plain packaging reform.

He stated that approximately 20,000 Australians die each year due to smoking, making it the leading cause of preventable deaths and disabilities in the country.

By the year 2030, the Labour Party aims to reduce the national smoking rate to below 5% and the smoking rate among indigenous populations to below 27%.

If the legislation is passed, the packaging and product dimensions of cigarettes and e-cigarettes will be standardized. The design of the filters will also be uniform. Furthermore, cigarettes and e-cigarettes will be prohibited from using attractive names that imply harm reduction, and health promotion materials will need to be inserted in the packaging.

If the legislation is passed, these changes will take effect in April next year, giving the industry a year to comply.

Butler says, "Since the implementation of plain packaging, the major tobacco companies have become increasingly innovative and cunning in their marketing strategies."