The New South Wales government is cracking down on the illegal tobacco trade, beefing up fines and warning shops and people selling tobacco products.
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00:00This right here is an illegal packet of cigarettes and the NSW Government today is issuing a
00:07warning for people trying to sell these.
00:10They've announced a suite of reforms that relate to significant fines to tackle the
00:15scope of what they say is a massive illegal trade of tobacco and they've shown some to
00:20the public here.
00:21As you'll see right across from the benches here, from packaged cigarettes as well as
00:26illegal chop-chop, Health Minister Ryan Park says a new suite of reforms including fines
00:32totalling more than $40,000 for individuals as well as more than $200,000 for corporations
00:38and businesses will be a significant step in combating the prolific illegal trade.
00:45This next plank is around three important reforms.
00:48A dedicated licensing system to make sure that we regulate what is an unregulated market
00:55at the moment.
00:56It brings us in line with other states and jurisdictions and unfortunately while we always
01:01like to lead the way in relation to public health, this is an area where NSW is somewhat
01:07playing catch-up but it is an area that Dr Chant and I are determined to fix.
01:13The state's Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant says the scourge of cigarette smoke
01:18not just in a legal sense but also even in regulated legal form is still a major health
01:23issue not just NSW but the entire country is combating.
01:28We want to send a strong message to really disincentivise new entrants to the market
01:32and really a warning for those people that are currently doing the wrong thing.
01:37We also acknowledge that there is support for the licence, strong support from the licensing
01:41scheme from those businesses that are doing the right thing but again redirect my message
01:46the best thing you can do for health is to quit smoking.
01:49Already the state opposition has said it will support the state Labor government's
01:53reforms as it's an urgent crisis that needs tackling though they also want to see a state
01:59inquiry particularly focusing on the regional trade of tobacco which they believe has far
02:05widespread consequences that are disproportionately impacting country towns.
02:11Of course what you see behind me here isn't just taking place in NSW in terms of the proliferation
02:17of illegal tobacco it's a problem encountered right across the country.