New Zealand's smoke ban abolition disappoints many people, especially health experts. The legislation was a big deal for New Zealanders and other people across the globe.
This is because the Scandinavian nation's smoking ban is the world's first generational smoking legislation, which greatly benefitted Kiwis and inspired other nations to restrict smoking.
Gardener from Auckland City Council, Jacqui, shows off the new rubbish bins for smokers as part of the ACC plan to keep cigarette butts off the streets, Auckland New Zealand, 10 December 2004.
However, New Zealand suddenly made a big U-turn as the country's new right-wing coalition announced the decision to abolish the smoking ban.
Why New Zealand's Smoking Ban Will Be Abolished
According to IFL Science's latest report, the reason behind the scrapping of New Zealand's pioneering tobacco ban is money. Specifically, government officials are expecting its removal to help pay for tax cuts.
New Zealand's new finance minister Nicola Willis explained that the decision will abolish the anti-smoking legislation so they can generate revenue from cigarette sales.
Aside from this, the smoking ban abolition will also fund the coalition's tax cuts. Before winning the New Zealand 2023 election, political parties promised numerous tax cuts, which attracted lots of voters.
However, their pledge requires more money in the Scandinavian nation's coffers. To do this, government officials saw allowing tobacco products as a great money-making method because of taxation.
"What you saw in the pre-election fiscal update was the Treasury assessed the effect of drastically reducing the number of shops that could sell tobacco products," explained Willis.
"Denicotising those products and introducing a range of restrictions would significantly reduce revenue to the Crown," added the official.
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Smoking Ban Abolition Disappoints Health Experts
Abdul Aziz, who chased the gunman of the Christchurch mosque attacks at Linwood mosque, smokes an e-cigarette as he leaves the Christchurch District Court on June 14, 2019. Brenton Tarrant, the man accused of shooting dead 51 Muslim worshippers in the Christchurch mosque attacks pleaded not guilty to multiple murder.
There's no denying that New Zealand's decision to abolish its inspiring tobacco ban disappoints many Kiwis, especially health experts.
One of them is Prof. Richard Edwards, a public health professional and tobacco control expert at the University of Otago. He said that they were disgusted and appalled by the decision, as reported by BBC.
Edwards added that the decision of New Zealand's new government to scrape the smoking ban is an "incredibly retrograde" step on world-leading, excellent health measures.
The professor further stated that most of the country's health organizations are also disgusted by the tobacco ban abolition. Because of this, they are urging the government officials to backtrack their decision.
Their criticisms are reasonable since recent studies revealed that smoke-free regulations can also reduce health system costs by over $1 billion over the next 20 years.
Aside from making healthcare cheaper, New Zealand's smoking ban can also save thousands of human lives by preventing them from consuming harmful cigarettes.
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