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Tobacco is Australia's Number One
cause of preventable death and disease - but what we spend on the fight
against it doesn't reflect that.
Below: TOBACCO
TAX and latest NEWS
on funding the fight against tobacco
Australia has a strong record of success in
tobacco control, our 2007 smoking rate (14 years and over, at least weekly)
down to around 18%. See
2007
National Drug Strategy Household Survey: first results
But still each day in
Australia, 50 people die prematurely from active and passive smoking.
Around three million Australians are still regular smokers. Deaths caused by
tobacco - over 15,000 a year - outstrip the
combined deaths from road and all other accidents, alcohol and all illicit drugs,
all homicide, HIV, and more. Tobacco causes 12% of the national burden
of disease, and 20% of all deaths in indigenous communities. It drains the Australian economy of over $31
billion a year in health and other social costs - at least four times
what it raises in tax.
Research shows over 80% of smokers want to
quit. Comprehensive, sustained anti-smoking campaigns overseas have
reduced smoking rates well below the current Australian
rate. The cost of achieving such a fall is more than offset
by massive savings in health care costs - and the health benefits to smokers,
their families and businesses.
Government investment in reducing smoking
rates has improved in recent years, but still doesn't match the scale
of the problem. Per capita, Australian (federal and state/territory) funding
of anti-tobacco measures is much lower than comparable OECD
countries (the US, Canada, New Zealand).
The strong economic case for better government
investment in reducing smoking rates and the huge benefits for governments, families, businesses and regional Australia are
set out in submissions each year to the Federal Government from Australia’s leading health organisations and medical
colleges.
We support:
- raising tobacco taxes and prices (see below);
- full funding for the Australian National
Tobacco Strategy;
- overall (federal + state/territory) government funding for education and
prevention strategies increased to a level of $10 per capita per
year;
- federal
funding
for the national tobacco control campaign to be increased to $100m a
year, with the majority of funds used to support social marketing; and
- sale of duty-free tobacco products to be prohibited
in Australia.
What should governments be spending on tobacco
control?
See National
Tobacco Strategy 2004-09 funding guidelines signed off by
all Australian governments
See Development
of a National Preventive Health Strategy on Tobacco - ASH submission to
Preventative Health Taskforce, 2008
TOBACCO TAX
See ASH Australia's (March 2010)
Tobacco
Tax factsheet
After
strong advocacy by ASH and other health groups, the Australian Government on
April 29, 2010 announced a 25% increase in
tobacco tax, raising the price of an average pack of 30 by around $2.20.
Health
groups have called for a second increase within two years, to raise price to 50% above
the pre-May 2010 price, to
bring Australia
into line with international best practice.
The
2010 tax rise was the first real-terms tobacco tax increase in a decade. It followed the Henry Tax
Review - which also proposed ending duty-free
tobacco concessions. See
government
announcement and
Henry
Tax Review 2010 and the
decision welcomed in ASH
media release 29/4/10
A
further tax increase would be needed within the next two years to achieve
international best practice - the government is yet to commit to this.
Surge in Quitline calls, NRT sales
Almost immediately the tax rise was passed by parliament, calls to the
Quitline doubled; and pharmacists
reported sales of nicotine patches and gum increased by over 30%. See
Melbourne
Age report 10/6/10 and Quit
release 15/6/10
Benefits of the tax rise
Evidence shows the increase will help more than 130,000 Australian adults quit and prevent 35,500 children from taking up smoking.
Most of these people will otherwise die prematurely from tobacco diseases.
This government leadership will reinvigorate
preventative health in Australia and help prevent thousands of premature
deaths; and will deliver over a billion dollars in federal revenue – an extraordinary funding
source for further investing in public health to offset projected costs of an ageing population.
An equitable measure
Increased excise will help disadvantaged Australians, who
bear the brunt of smoking-related death and disease. It
will help break the cycle of disadvantage by encouraging blue collar
workers to quit. It is supported by the majority of these smokers. It
will particularly reduce smoking rates in high-risk groups such as
people with binge drinking, drug abuse and mental health problems
(see research in News, below).
A tobacco tax increase need not hurt the
poorest.
...despite what Philip
Morris "No Tax Hike" website claims
See the evidence in our Tobacco
Tax factsheet
Strong public support
General public support is also very
high: Herald/Nielsen poll of around 1400 voters in May 2010 (after the
25% tax rise was announced) showing 71% approval; and equally strong
support from Labor and Coalition voters. Sydney
Morning Herald report 11/5/10 An
earlier Newspoll survey showed 86% of Australians support tobacco tax
increases if most of the
revenue is allocated to health.
Tobacco industry's illicit trade furphy
The tax rise is not expected to increase illicit trade, if
accompanied by a modest increase in enforcement - despite the tobacco
industry's scare campaign against a rise. See
global
study on tobacco smuggling
NEWS
(including latest research)
High tax not linked to
illicit trade: NZ report
July 2010: Report by ASH New Zealand shows despite one of the
highest levels of tobacco tax in the world, NZ has a very low rate of
illicit tobacco trade - under 2% of total consumption. The report shows
the tobacco industry has been involved in illicit trade and wrongly
claims that higher taxes will increase illicit trade. The report says
removing duty-free allowances would significantly reduce illicit
sales. See report
Tobacco tax hikes can slash
smoking in high risk groups
June 2010: Tobacco tax rises can
slash smoking rates among people struggling with drug, binge
drinking or mental health problems, says a study in the American
Journal of Public Health. The study of over 7,500 people found these
groups were more than 18% more likely to quit smoking if prices rose. See
Healthday
report 6/6/10 and abstract
$5m
federal boost for Quitline
May
2010: Australian
Government's additional grant to help
with surge in quit calls following the tax rise. See
Minister’s
release 31/5/10
Rudd
government announces tobacco tax rise
April 2010: Australian Government announced 25% tobacco tax increase, raising
average 30-pack price by around $2.20. First real-terms tobacco tax increase in a decade
- followed strong advocacy by ASH and other health groups, and Henry Tax Review - which also proposed
ending duty-free tobacco. See government
announcement and
Henry
Tax Review 2010 and the
decision welcomed in ASH
media release 29/4/10 The decision drew 71% popular
support in a Herald-Nielsen
survey
Global report: raising tobacco tax,
enforcement best way to cut smuggling
April 2010: An authoritative worldwide report has shown the best
way to reduce tobacco smuggling, meet health and revenue objectives is
to increase tobacco tax and improve enforcement strategies. The report
makes nonsense of the tobacco industry's attempted scare campaign
against an increase. See
ASH
Australia media release 17/4/10 and earlier Sydney
Telegraph report 14/4/10 and analysis
by Prof Simon Chapman
Tobacco
myth busted: huge drain, not "benefit" to economy
2009: Tobacco industry myths of
"paying for itself" and "benefiting" the Australian
economy have been shattered by a new report showing its multibillion
dollar burden far outweighs its meagre net contribution. See
full
report, CCWA media release 22/10/09 and factsheets See
more tobacco
industry myths busted
Dearer smokes = fewer smokers: survey
2009: Raising cigarette prices will help smokers
quit, Australian survey confirms. Quit poll shows 53% of recent quitters
believe price is a factor. Cost is the biggest single factor in
quitting, and smokefree places laws the biggest factor in staying
smokefree. See
AAP/ninemsn
report 22/9/09
Taskforce calls for tobacco tax
increase
2009: ASH Australia welcomed recommendation by
National Preventative Health Taskforce that tobacco taxes
be raised so a packet of 30 costs $20 within three years. See
pp. 175-177 of Taskforce
report, Tobacco chapter and ASH
media release 1/9/01
Three-quarters
of smokers would quit if price raised 50%
2009: 74% of smokers say they
would quit if cigarette prices increased by 50% according to a Quit /
Heart Foundation / Cancer Council study.
See
media
release 15/4/09
USA: Largest tobacco tax rise in history
2009: The US adopted its largest-ever federal increase in
tobacco tax. See USA
Today report
Australia needs tax
increase to meet targets: study
2009: Australia must raise tobacco taxes or smoking rates fall will
falter, said an Australian study in Tobacco Control. It warned that quit rates
must double for our smoking rate to fall to 10% by 2020.
See abstract
and accepted
manuscript
See our Tobacco
Tax factsheet
Development
of a National Preventive Health Strategy on Tobacco
- ASH submission to
Preventative Health Taskforce, 2008
Tips
for taking tobacco action
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