Smokefree efforts potentially stubbed out by new government

There are fears relaxing efforts to reduce smoking will have a negative impact on Pacific and Māori communities.

The incoming government wants to scrap legislation for three major smokefree laws around reducing the number of tobacco outlets and cancelling plans to limit sales to people born after 2004 and creating a smokefree generation.

Health Coalition Aotearoa co-chair of the Smokefree Expert Advisory Group Leitu Tufuga says the move winds back years of progress.

“There is huge, huge risk for Māori and Pacific. We’ve got this goal to be smokefree by 2025 and reaching that five percent of those smoking in Aotearoa, that will do the dent to get us across the line.

“Repealing this back will mean we will be going back to what we have been fighting for for a long time.”

Smokefree NZ figures show 18% of Pacific adults are regular smokers, and almost one in seven deaths among Pacific people is attributable to smoking.

Speaking to Levi Matautia-Morgan on 531pi’s Pacific Mornings, Tufuga wants the government to allow the lifesaving legislation to continue.

“We want them to stop the repeal. We want them to actually have a look at the money that it will save and in particular the lives, we have 5,000 people that die each [year].

“Just think of the pictures you have hanging on the wall, that has the ‘ula on it, the gravesite that you constantly go to, that’s what we want to change.”

Former Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says a lot of work went into the laws to protect vulnerable communities, and questions the approach from the incoming government.

“You’re looking at thousands of Māori dying because of smoke. The smokefree legislation took quite a bit of effort, it almost feels like a different direction when it comes to protecting lives, and particularly protecting Māori lives and Pacific lives, who would die because of smoking.”

The ACT party takes the view that smoking and its negative side effects is a personal choice, but Tufuga disagrees.

“When we have an environment that’s saturated, tobacco sold everywhere, in our corner dairies, every petrol station, every shopping outlet, that’s not personal choice.

“So when we have an environment that’s not set up for our whānau to win, we need to think about the systems in place.”

New-blue Minister of Health and Pacific Peoples

National’s Shane Reti will be the new Minister for Pacific Peoples, as well as taking on the Minister of Health portfolio.

Former National MP Fonoti Agnes Loheni says health funding priorities included streamlining the system and reducing wait times, but says the goal of Smokefree 2025 is still achievable without the legislation.

“Smoking numbers have gone down, but education around smoking and the effects of smoking, that’ll still continue even without this policy.

“But we do need to look broader at health across, and there are other areas that were definitely in need of getting back up.”

Aupito says Reti will be a good fit for the role with his te ao Māori approach, and says having the Pacific Peoples and Health portfolios complement each other.

“He’s going to be quite busy with health, and what appears from outside, the contradictions; on the one hand they’re aiming for better health outcomes for everybody, and they will wait for the data to indicate where they focus their support their energy and resourcing, and I’m hopeful that the data will indicate what it indicated to us, that Māori and Pasifika will be the priority.”