New Zealand wants a 'smoke free' future.
Its goal is to eliminate - completely - cigarette smoking: generation after generation, starting from that class of 2009. The strategy adopted by the Wellington government is an absolute novelty, which approved a law according to which starting from 1 January 2023 the sale of cigarettes and tobacco to those born after 2008 will be banned.
Not an age limit, therefore, but the creation of a real watershed dictated by the year of birth, to lead, year after year, to the reduction of the people who will be allowed to purchase these products.
So, on balance, by 2050, all New Zealanders who have reached the age of 40 will not be able to buy cigarettes.
But the authorities believe that by 2025 their mission will actually be considered accomplished.
And this thanks to an integrated strategy, so to speak, with a legislative tightening launched simultaneously on several levels.
The rule will in fact be accompanied by a series of other measures to make smoking less affordable and accessible, including a drastic reduction in the legal amount of nicotine in tobacco products and limited sale only to specialized tobacconists, rather than shops and supermarkets.
The number of shops legally authorized to sell cigarettes will thus be reduced from 6,000 to just 600 across the country.
The country is starting from an advantage, given that according to official data for November, only 8% of adult citizens are smokers, compared with 9.4% in the same period last year.
However, the number of daily vapers is increasing, with a greater increase than the decline in daily smokers: 8.3% of adults now vape daily compared to 6.2% last year - reports the Guardian.
"Thousands of people will live longer, healthier lives and the healthcare system will gain $5 billion from not needing to treat diseases caused by smoking, such as many types of cancer, heart attacks and strokes," said Health Minister Ayesha Verrall commenting on the passage of the law.
There are many precedents in strategies to combat smoking,
starting with the Canadian one that set the pace, having been the first country to launch the shock photo campaign on cigarette packets two decades ago, marking an international trend.
Ottawa relaunched a few months ago: Canada now has the ambition to become the first country in the world where it will be mandatory to print a warning message regarding the health risks of smoking on every single cigarette.
The initiative was launched last June with the beginning of a transition period which, according to the wishes of the government, could lead to the definitive introduction of the new rules in the second half of 2023.
Ottawa relaunched a few months ago: Canada now has the ambition to become the first country in the world where it will be mandatory to print a warning message regarding the health risks of smoking on every single cigarette.
The initiative was launched last June with the beginning of a transition period which, according to the wishes of the government, could lead to the definitive introduction of the new rules in the second half of 2023.
Ottawa relaunched a few months ago: Canada now has the ambition to become the first country in the world where it will be mandatory to print a warning message regarding the health risks of smoking on every single cigarette.
The initiative was launched last June with the beginning of a transition period which, according to the wishes of the government, could lead to the definitive introduction of the new rules in the second half of 2023.