Expertise in alcohol equips Ministry of Justice to effectively enforce smokefree regulations

A lack of enforcement of smokefree regulations by the Labour Government for many years has allowed widespread access to vaping products among young people and escalating frustration from both the public and industry.

Except for a handful of bad apples, the vaping industry in New Zealand is a legitimate, reputable industry united in its desire to help Kiwis stop smoking. We have a strong regulatory framework designed to stop young people accessing vaping products, but without enforcement the regulations are pointless.

An absence of enforcement poses the most significant threat to our industry. It is driving policy makers to overregulate making it harder for smokers to quit, while fuelling big tobacco’s hold on smokers and failing to prevent youth access to vaping products.

We know social sourcing is the primary way teens access vaping products. The ASH Year 10 Survey found just 7.6% of young people who regularly vape source product from a vape shop, dairy or online. Industry acknowledges this number is not good enough.

But we must ask the question, if industry is responsible for 7.6% of sales to our young people, what are we doing to stop the 92.4%? Finger pointing at industry is not solving the problem. Industry has the insights and the expertise to help New Zealand get in front of this issue, which is why we have offered our support to Minister Costello.

Industry has pushed for better enforcement of the regulations for years. We have asked for higher fines for rogue retailers, proposed compulsory ID verification for online, asked for the Government to ban disposables and proactively called the MOH to dob in non-compliant retailers and products.

Sadly, outcomes from the MOH have been woeful, with charges brought against just one shopkeeper since 2020.

The time has come to shift the policing of the smokefree regulations from the MOH to the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) – and we have suggested this to the Minister.

Experience has shown us the MOH appears to have little interest in policing the smokefree regulations. The MOJ effectively handles the complex alcohol regulatory system and over the years has built up significant knowledge and experience in this space.

There is a strong argument for separating the policing of the industry from the smoking cessation policy work undertaken by MOH and Te Whatu Ora. Distance from enforcement means MOH can focus on developing evidence-based smoking cessation policies that support public health outcomes. It removes any conflict of interest and lets police draw on their specialist skills to ensure regulatory compliance by retailers.

It is certainly time to try something different, and we must get the balance right between protecting our youth and considering the needs of hundreds of thousands of ex-smokers who now rely on vaping products to stay smokefree.