"If nothing changes, it would be decades till Māori smoking rates fall below 5%, and this government is not prepared to leave people behind." The package of measures will make New Zealand's retail tobacco industry one of the most restricted in the world, just behind Bhutan where cigarette sales are banned outright. The new rules would halve the country's smoking rates in as few as 10 years from when they take effect, the government said. Smoking kills about 5,000 people a year in New Zealand, making it one of the country's top causes of preventable death. "This action plan offers some hope of realising our 2025 Smokefree Aotearoa goal, and keeping our tamariki (Māori children) smokefree."

Source: Stuff December 09, 2021 17:08 UTC