Anthony Albanese
faces a huge call to ban cigarettes from supermarkets in the latest move to clamp down on smoking.
Lung Foundation Australia CEO Mark Brooke is calling on the government to bring in new legislation as he branded supermarkets ‘irresponsible’ for selling cigarettes.
‘We need everyone from government to big corporations to put the lung health of Australians ahead of profits from a product that kills 66 Australians daily,’ he said.
‘Previous news reports have highlighted
Coles
Estimates suggest that their annual cigarette sales could be lethal for over 1,600 Australians and result in tobacco-related healthcare expenses exceeding $300 million per year.
It adheres to a fresh licensing system scheduled for implementation nationwide.
New South Wales
from July 1.
Australians might soon lose the ability to
purchase cigarettes alongside their regular groceries
across the country as restrictions on smoking increase.
The new scheme requires all tobacco retailers and wholesalers to have a license to sell tobacco and non-tobacco smoking products in the state.
In NSW, only pharmacies are licensed to sell any type of vaping good, regardless of its nicotine content.
It’s illegal for any other retailers to sell vaping products.
Lung Foundation Australia has urged the federal government to follow suit and introduce legislation that would cover the entire country.
The federal government can assist wider initiatives by examining the health and economic effects of implementing a generational ban on tobacco products, according to Lung Foundation Australia.
more to come
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