Dr James Martin - Criminologist
- Pippa Starr
- Mar 24
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 6
Collaborated with: Edward Jegasothy
As seen on our Staying Alive podcast series:
24 March 2025 - analysing the emergence, implications, and challenges of Australia’s de facto war on Nicotine
https://harmreductionjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12954-025-01163-6
"The current state of Australian nicotine control leaves policymakers in a deeply uncomfortable situation. This commentary has outlined how the government’s current approach to restricting the supply of nicotine has facilitated the growth of a dangerous black market. Along with it, this shift brings significant costs including systemic violence, loss of government revenue, and threats to the safety of both consumers and the wider public. These harms are accrued in addition to the opportunity cost of applying a harm reduction approach which has been successfully implemented in other parts of the world. The recent acceleration in the decline in smoking prevalence which has come alongside, and is likely due to, the rise of vaping shows that such an approach is viable. However, the illicit status of these products means that this is an unintended outcome of the failure of the current policies and is accompanied by harms that are not encountered in a context of legal supply."
19 February 2025 - VAADA Conference 2025 Panel Discussion
Over the last decade, vaping have emerged as a significant national and global issue. This has sparked intense debate about the impacts of e-cigarettes and vaping on public health, the environment, community safety due to the involvement of organised crime groups, and Australia’s world-leading success in reducing population-level cigarette use. This panel brings together experts from diverse fields to explore the complexities of this pressing issue. Despite Australia’s claim of a world leading regulatory framework, e-cigarettes continue to be imported, sold, and used beyond state control. Addressing topics such as a new age of nicotine dependence, impact on children and young people, lost tax revenue, effective regulatory models, as well as ethical and philosophical considerations, the panel offers a multifaceted discussion to illuminate this challenging public health concern.
Moderator: Dr Kate Seear | Professor, Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society La Trobe University Panelists: Dr James Martin | Senior Lecturer, Criminology Course Director, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Deakin University Dr Mary Walker | Lecturer Philosophy, La Trobe University Dr David Hayward | Emeritus Professor of Public Policy and the Social Economy, RMIT University Dr Hester Wilson | GP and Addiction Medicine Specialist, The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Emeritus Professor Wayne Hall | National Centre for Youth Substance Use Research, University of Queensland
Video here>>
15 July 2024 - Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into vaping
CRIMINOLOGIST DR JAMES MARTIN told the Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into vaping that Mark Butler’s plan to step up enforcement and bans on the illicit vape markets is certain to fail, describing it as “a band-aid on an otherwise serious and untreated wound.” more>>
