What The Media Say - March To May 2025
- Pippa Starr
- May 31
- 42 min read
Updated: Jun 14
This page analyses what is said about Australian vaping and tobacco harm reduction in the media, including what may be published in journals and by influencers.
This will help to hold the media accountable to report accurately and sensibly.
🔥💣💥For all firebombing reports go here>>
2025 Media Sentiment Score (March - May '25):
Positive | 12 |
Neutral | 15 |
Negative | 15 |
May 2025:
31 May 2025 Young Australians throwing away illegal vapes as prices soar
"Vaping rates are falling among young adults and high schoolers, prompting Health Minister Mark Butler to claim Australia’s world-first vape ban is working." source>>
The article “Young Australians throwing away illegal vapes as prices soar” by Paul Sakkal, while highlighting recent shifts in youth vaping trends, suffers from serious factual inconsistencies, particularly around illicit market pricing, and presents a narrow, arguably misleading narrative on Australia’s broader vaping policy.
Here's a critique grounded in current evidence and real-world data.
🔍 1. Illicit Market Pricing Claims Are Incorrect
The article claims:
“Prices for the fruity-flavoured puffers illegally sold… have risen from about $25 to between $50 and $60…”
This is inaccurate and far from the mark.
Illicit disposable vapes currently retail for $10–$30, depending on size, brand, and region—not $50–$60. This has been confirmed through consumer reports, industry surveillance, and community forums.
Illicit cigarettes are commonly sold for $10 per pack, a stark contrast to the legal retail price exceeding $40 due to high excise taxes.
Inflating black-market prices misleads the public and policy stakeholders, creating a false sense of success in enforcement and ignores the market’s resilience and adaptability. It downplays the proliferation of cheap, unregulated products, which poses actual risks to consumers.
📉 2. Misrepresenting Vaping Trends and Effectiveness
The article celebrates small reductions in youth vaping as validation that "the ban is working." However, several points must be contextualised:
According to the Cancer Council's Generation Vape report, the drop in youth vaping from 17% to 15.5% is modest, and the methods of data collection (surveys and interviews) warrant caution in interpretation.
Most youth vaping is experimental, not regular or dependent use. As shown in Colin Mendelsohn’s evidence review:
“Most vaping by young never-smokers is experimental and short-term. Regular vaping is uncommon”.
Moreover, youth vaping is not driving a new generation of smokers. The notion that vaping is a “gateway to smoking” has been debunked repeatedly:
“The net effect of youth vaping at a population level is to displace smoking.”
⚖️ 3. Harm Reduction and Access to Safer Alternatives
The article neglects the public health cost of restricting access to regulated vaping products for adult smokers.
Australia’s prescription-only model has fostered a thriving black market, not reduced harm:
“The current regulatory model has failed. Unregulated products are sold freely to youth and criminal networks profit from the lack of legal options.”
Vaping is one of the most effective tools for smoking cessation according to the NHS and Public Health England:
“Nicotine vapes are one of the most effective stop smoking aids.”
Current Australian policy paradoxically:
Blocks adult smokers from safer alternatives.
Empowers criminal distribution of unregulated, high-risk products.
🚨 4. Alarmist and Misleading Health Claims
Statements from Minister Butler, such as:
“Vapes were a ruse from Big Tobacco… used chemicals from weed killer and nail polish remover…”
are misleading and play into fear-based messaging, not science.
These chemicals (e.g. propylene glycol and acetone) may be present in trace levels, but so are many safe food-grade chemicals used in everyday products.
The UK NHS clarifies that vaping poses only a fraction of the harm of smoking.
No confirmed cases of “popcorn lung” from vaping, despite frequent media claims.
🛑 Conclusion: A Policy Rooted in Prohibition, Not Public Health
The article offers an oversimplified, often inaccurate narrative of success. In reality:
The policy has driven a massive black market, misinformed the public, and denied smokers access to harm reduction.
Effective regulation would:
Allow tightly regulated consumer sales,
Enforce age restrictions,
Drive out criminal networks, and
Support smokers trying to quit.
19 May 2025 Tobacco Tax Disaster Playing Out On Streets & In Budget
This disaster is playing out in our streets – from more than 120 arson attacks across Melbourne that have claimed at least one life to dodgy looking tobacco shops in Newtown and small “farms” in rural areas with unusual-looking cash crops, it’s clear to anyone that the current system is failing.
1 May 2025 Coalition Confirms It Will Legalise Vaping
The Coalition has confirmed it would allow vapes to be sold at retail stores, tax the products and regulate the industry, in a departure from the current legislation which allows for vapes only to be sold at pharmacies.
8 May 2025 Cancer Council Backs WA's New Anti-Vaping Rules
Cancer Council WA fully supports new regulations in Western Australia requiring a prescription to access e-cigarettes (vapes) via pharmacies.
Why WA and the Cancer Council Have Got It Wrong on Vaping:
The Cancer Council WA’s support of new 2025 regulations requiring a prescription to access nicotine vapes in Western Australia is not only misguided, it directly undermines public health and smoking cessation efforts.
1. Prescription-only access doesn’t reduce harm,it limits it
These new laws place more barriers between smokers and a far safer alternative to cigarettes. Instead of making vapes available to adult smokers at their point of need, WA is pushing them into an unregulated black market or back toward deadly cigarettes. Real-world data shows that countries like the UK and New Zealand,where vaping is legally and readily accessible,are seeing record-low smoking rates.
2. “No TGA approval” is a red herring
Vaping products have not been approved by the TGA,but not because they are unsafe. It’s because Australia has created impossible standards for approval that no overseas manufacturer has yet chosen to navigate. Globally, millions have quit smoking with vapes. The UK’s NHS actively recommends vaping to quit smoking, based on strong evidence and a harm-reduction framework. Australia is alone in trying to regulate vaping like a pharmaceutical rather than a consumer alternative to smoking.
3. The ‘youth gateway’ claim is misleading
Claims that young people who vape are more likely to smoke confuse correlation with causation. The vast majority of young people who vape are also those most likely to have tried smoking anyway. In fact, smoking rates among Australian youth were falling even before these vaping crackdowns, and vaping may actually be displacing smoking in this age group.
4. Ignoring the most powerful cessation tool
Cancer Council promotes nicotine patches and gum, yet these have low long-term success rates. Vaping, on the other hand, has shown to be almost twice as effective in randomised trials (e.g. Hajek et al., 2019, NEJM). Denying adult smokers easy access to vaping products while endorsing outdated, low-efficacy options is not evidence-based harm reduction, it's ideological obstruction.
5. The black market is thriving, and they helped create it
The prescription model has failed catastrophically since its rollout in 2021. Illicit sales of unregulated disposable vapes have surged. Pharmacies are not equipped to become vape retailers. Criminal networks now dominate the vape market in WA and beyond, flooding the streets with unknown, unsafe products. WA’s new regulations will do nothing to stop that.
Cancer Council WA and the WA Government are ignoring overwhelming international evidence on vaping as a harm reduction tool. Their approach will not reduce harm, it will drive it underground, make quitting harder, and perpetuate smoking-related death and disease. Instead of doubling down on a broken model, they should support regulated, legal access to adult smokers and enforce proper age restrictions, not prohibition dressed up as “safeguards.”
Vaping isn’t the enemy. Smoking is. And this policy protects the wrong one.
April 2025:
15 April 2025 New Study Shows Champix Could Work For Vapers
A new study exploring the use of a popular anti-smoking pill to help young people quit vaping is being hailed as "exciting" by Australian researchers.
Why This is wrong:
🧬 1. Proven Safety Concerns and Market Withdrawal
In July 2021, varenicline was withdrawn from the Australian market by Pfizer due to the discovery of nitrosamine impurities—specifically N-nitroso-varenicline, a probable human carcinogen. This class of chemical is linked to increased cancer risk and was found at levels exceeding the acceptable daily intake.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) issued safety alerts and restricted access.
Although the medication returned with some batches in 2023, trust and safety concerns linger.
🔗 Source: TGA Medicines Recall Database
💊 2. Black Box Warnings: Psychiatric Side Effects & Suicides
Varenicline has been linked to serious psychiatric adverse events, including:
Depression
Aggression
Suicidal ideation
Completed suicides
In fact, multiple Australian reports—such as those submitted to TGA’s Database of Adverse Event Notifications (DAEN)—include deaths and psychiatric hospitalisations attributed to varenicline. These risks are significant for young people, especially those who may already experience mood disorders or emotional volatility.
“There is well-documented evidence of users developing suicidal thoughts and behaviours. In some cases, Australians have tragically died while taking varenicline.” – Dr Colin Mendelsohn
🧠 3. Unsuitability for Youth
The recent study referenced in the article you provided focused on 16–25 year-olds. However:
Varenicline is not approved for use in people under 18 in most countries, including Australia.
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) and other experts emphasise the need for caution in prescribing medications with psychiatric risks to adolescents.
Youth may not tolerate the drug well due to ongoing brain development and vulnerability to psychiatric side effects.
🚫 4. Varenicline Is Unnecessary: Effective and Safer Alternatives Exist
The NHS and Cancer Research UK confirm that nicotine vaping is one of the most effective and significantly less harmful tools for quitting smoking, and by extension, managing nicotine dependency.
Nicotine itself is not the enemy: It’s relatively benign in therapeutic doses.
Behavioural support and gradual reduction using vapes allow for harm reduction without introducing powerful, risky medications.
🧨 5. The JAMA Study Has Major Limitations
The article praises a Massachusetts General Hospital study, but it has caveats:
The trial ran for just 12 weeks. Long-term outcomes, especially relapse and side-effect tracking, are unclear.
Participants already had moderate to severe addiction, possibly making them unrepresentative of typical young vapers.
Varenicline was administered alongside counselling, so it’s not possible to isolate its efficacy without behavioural support.
Additionally, researchers admitted to limitations in behavioural engagement and that many participants had used tobacco before—this confounds whether results truly apply to non-smoking youth vapers.
📉 Ethical and Policy Rebuttal
Promoting varenicline for youth nicotine cessation flies in the face of modern Tobacco Harm Reduction (THR) principles, especially when:
The safer, non-pharmaceutical alternative of vaping exists and has shown high success rates.
It undermines public confidence in harm-reduction strategies by suggesting that medications with severe side effects are preferable to safer alternatives like regulated vaping.
✅ Summary: Why Varenicline Is Unsuitable to Help Vapers Quit
Concern Explanation:
Carcinogenic impuritiesNitrosamines found in varenicline led to its temporary removal from the market.
Psychiatric risksStrong evidence links it to suicide, aggression, and depression, especially in vulnerable individuals.
Inappropriate for youthNot approved for under-18s; adolescents are more prone to side effects.
Safer options existRegulated nicotine vapes are safer, well-tolerated, and highly effective.
Public health contradictionUsing a high-risk medication to eliminate a low-risk behaviour is unethical.
15 April 2025 QLD's Flying Squad Tackles BM Tobacco & Vapes
Hidden cabinets, secret compartments and vacuum cleaners are being used to conceal illicit tobacco and vapes in retail stores.
Why Queensland Health is wrong:
⚖️ 1. Emphasis on Enforcement, Not Public Health Outcomes
The tone of the article glorifies enforcement ("Flying Squad", “trap doors”, “vacuum cleaners”), which may resonate with the public's appetite for action, but it lacks any measurable health outcome data. For a health department initiative, there is a surprising absence of evaluation on smoking or vaping prevalence changes, smoking cessation support, or harm reduction outcomes.
What’s missing: Evidence that these seizures have led to reduced smoking or vaping, or transition to safer legal alternatives for adults.
🚨 2. Enforcement Focus May Be Counterproductive
The article makes no distinction between regulated nicotine vaping products and unregulated or illicit ones. This reflects Australia’s failed prescription-only model, which experts widely agree has fostered a booming black market:
“Australia’s prescription-only regulatory model… has produced a thriving black market controlled by criminal networks”.
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) supports vaping as a harm reduction tool for smokers when first-line therapies fail.
Issue: By cracking down indiscriminately, the policy may:Block adult smokers from accessing less harmful nicotine alternatives.Drive more people to unregulated and potentially riskier black market products.
🚫 3. Fear-Based Framing of Youth Vaping
Anecdotes like students pushing each other to vape mid-class are emotionally potent but lack scientific grounding. While youth vaping should be addressed, evidence shows:
“Regular vaping by non-smoking youth is uncommon and most use is experimental”.
UK evidence shows youth vaping may displace smoking, not cause it.
Concern: Scare stories may fuel stigma and misinformation, potentially discouraging adult smokers from switching to safer alternatives.
❗ 4. Lack of Harm Reduction Perspective
There is no mention of safer nicotine delivery, legal regulated vapes, or access pathways for smokers who want to quit. Compare this to the UK approach:
The NHS endorses vaping as “one of the most effective stop smoking aids”.
The UK government is distributing vapes to one million smokers as part of their “Swap to Stop” initiative.
Problem: Queensland's enforcement-only focus appears out of sync with international best practices on tobacco harm reduction.
💰 5. Impressive Seizure Numbers – But to What End?
The article cites 15.2 million cigarettes and 172,356 vapes seized. While eye-catching, seizures are a process metric, not an outcome. There's no evidence presented that these seizures have:
Reduced smoking or vaping prevalence
Reduced youth access
Reduced health burden from smoking
Analogy: This is like reporting how many syringes were confiscated during a drug crackdown – without discussing if drug use or deaths declined.
🧭 Policy Spectacle, But Public Health Substance Lacking
The article reads more like a public relations piece showcasing regulatory muscle than a health initiative. While targeting black market actors is justified, the lack of nuance, harm reduction, or support for adult smokers is deeply problematic.
Balanced Recommendation:A public health approach should:Support legal, regulated access to nicotine vapes for adult smokersFocus enforcement on underage sales and unsafe productsProvide cessation support that includes vaping as a valid toolAvoid scare tactics and anecdotal moral panic around youth
4 April 2025 Nitazenes Found In Black Market Vapes
Potentially deadly synthetic opioids have been found in vape liquid, as criminals make new varieties to evade detection.
Nitazenes are made in a laboratory and are considered up to 10 times stronger than fentanyl, which has caused an unprecedented number of deaths in North America.
4 April 2025 Brisbane At Centre Of QLD Illegal Cig Boom
About 29 million cigarettes were seized in Queensland between July 2023 and December 2024.
Across Australia, about 1784 tonnes of tobacco – equivalent to about two billion cigarettes – was seized by border forces last financial year.
That equates to about $3 billion in unpaid taxes.
Internal reports estimate smoking costs Queensland about $27.4 billion through strain on the healthcare system, loss of productivity and other costs.
2 April 2025 Gold Coast Stores Shut In Health Authority Raids
The Gold Coast's public health unit has raided stores on the tourist strip, seizing vapes and tobacco.
Raids were carried out on stores at Southport, Mermaid Beach, Broadbeach and Nobby Beach, leading to the closure of five tobacconists.
2 April 2025 Tobacco Excise Revenue Has Tanked
Tobacco excise revenue has tanked amid a booming black market
It's a diabolical problem for the government, whose public health policy has long relied on increasing tobacco excise duty as its primary tool to reduce smoking.
by Dr Fei Gao and Professor Andrew Terry
2 April 2025 Has Australia Passed "Peak Vape"? 📺
New data suggests adolescent vaping is at its lowest since records began. Unlike the UK and Canada, Australia restricts vape sales, requiring prescriptions for under-18s.
by 7 Sunrise
1 April 2025 Massive Drop In Cig Sales As SA Turns To Black Market
Small businesses say cigarette sales have dropped sharply as illegal tobacco booms.
The decline has also indirectly impacted the sales of other products.
1 April 2025 Menthol Cigs Banned From April
New laws come into effect in Australia today that change the look, ingredients, and packaging of tobacco products.
The Australian government passed the package of tobacco laws in late 2023, which include:
standardised tobacco pack and cigarette stick sizes, no more novelty pack sizes or cigarette lengths
updated and improved graphic health warnings and quitting advice inserts within all tobacco packs
warnings printed directly on cigarettes
banning ingredients that make tobacco taste better and easier to smoke, including menthol.
1 April 2025 Grim Warnings Printed On Cigs Vid 📺
Australia will become the second country in the world after Canada to print grim warnings on every single cigarette.
The move is one of a raft of new laws surrounding smoking and vaping starting today.
Cancer Council and Quit backed the move, saying the phrases convey the dangers of the habit "in a manner that cannot be avoided".
March 2025:
27 March 2025 Mark Butler ABC RN Breakfast
Earlier on the program, Minister, we were talking to Rohan Pike, who's a former federal police officer, and helped to set up Border Force's illegal tobacco taskforce. I was asking him about the increase that we've seen in the budget for enforcement to deal with the tobacco issue and he was saying, in his view, from his experience at least, that enforcement wasn't the way to go here. Why are you confident that it is?
BUTLER: Our additional enforcement efforts have resulted in a very big increase in seizures of illegal cigarettes at the border. A 50 per cent increase in one year, to the point where in 6 months we've seized 1.3 billion cigarettes, just an extraordinary number. Our enforcement measures are also working with vaping. We've seized millions and millions of vapes at the border, and I know that our measures there have led to a substantial reduction in vaping, importantly, particularly among younger people, teenagers and very young adults. Vaping rates are down about 30 per cent for adults over the age of 30, vaping rates are down about 50 per cent, and importantly for parents and school leaders, suspensions at school because of vaping are down 50 per cent in the last year because of the measures we've put in place. I accept this is not easy. I've never pretended this was going to be easy. We're not only fighting big tobacco here, we're also fighting organised crime, but we're determined to do this.
Mark Butler is Wrong, Here's Why:
Mark Butler's statement in favour of enforcement-heavy measures to curb vaping and illegal tobacco use is problematic and misleading for several reasons—especially in light of well-established harm reduction strategies and the unintended consequences of prohibition-style policy.
Here’s a breakdown of where Butler goes wrong:
🧩 1. Over-reliance on enforcement ignores the root cause of demand
While Butler cites large seizure volumes (e.g. 1.3 billion illegal cigarettes and "millions of vapes"), this is not evidence of effectiveness, but rather a symptom of a thriving black market—which his policies have helped fuel.
“Australia’s prescription-only regulatory model of vaping has produced a thriving black market controlled by criminal networks in which unregulated vaping products are sold freely to youth.”— Dr Colin Mendelsohn, Evidence Review
Seizures show how widespread the issue is, not that it's being solved.
📉 2. There's no solid evidence that enforcement reduced youth vaping by 50%
Butler claims school suspensions due to vaping dropped by 50%—but provides no source. Independent reviews show:
Frequent vaping among teen non-smokers is rare in Australia
Most youth vaping is experimental and short-term, not a sign of long-term addiction
Sensationalist fears of a "teen vaping epidemic" are not supported by population-level data
🚫 3. Enforcement-led policy is harming adult smokers
Australia's approach has made safer nicotine products harder to access for smokers, despite robust evidence that:
Vaping is one of the most effective ways to quit smoking
It’s substantially less harmful than smoking
By blocking access and driving vaping underground, Butler’s policy increases harm for adult smokers, especially in low-income communities.
Public health experts overwhelmingly recommend a regulated, retail-based model for adult vaping products—paired with strict age controls and accurate information. Enforcement alone, without access to safer alternatives, does not reduce demand, and may cause more harm than good.
27 March 2025 Secret Warehouses Used By Vic Police Cost $750K To Store Vapes
Victoria Police is having to lease several warehouses to store more than a million vapes it has seized in the past two years.
And when it receives a court order to green light destroying the evidence, the force will have to spend more than $750,000 from its budget to do so.
by Jon Kaila - Herald Sun
27 March 2025 Push For Tobacco Excise Freeze To Curb Black Market
Australia's booming illegal cigarette trade has burned a $6.9 billion hole in the federal budget and continues to fuel organised crime
But despite ongoing calls to freeze any further increase to tobacco excise to combat the black market, the Treasurer has ruled out that option.
27 March 2025 Unintended Cost Of Tobacco Tax
The Federal Government says increasing law enforcement spending will help the Budget's tax revenue hole, created by increasing black market tobacco sales.
However, experts believe the tax excise has risen so much, it's forced people to turn to the illegal trade.
27 March 2025 Australia's Fight With Big Tobacco Fuelled A Black Market
"What's happening now is we've had the illicit tobacco market has stepped in and taken advantage of the fact that we have high tobacco taxes, but we haven't had the corresponding enforcement to shut those illicit sellers down."
26 March 2025 Mark Butler ABC Adelaide
Can I ask about the black hole in your budget because of tobacco excise? Now you have continually put up the tobacco excise. We learnt that this has cost the federal government and also us taxpayers $7 billion over five years. We know a lot of that money now has gone to organised crime organisations.
Producer: JULES SCHILLER - ABC
*Claim / Why It Fails
*Excise deters smoking / Only up to a point; then fuels black market
*Crime exists globally / Doesn’t excuse policies that create more local demand for illicit products
*Lowering prices won’t work / ignores models in UK/NZ where moderate pricing + regulated access are successful
*“We’re doing this for health” / But block access to vapes, which are far less harmful
*“Excise works” / Smoking rates are stagnating; policy is failing the most disadvantaged
*“Beer tax is different” / Contradicts harm-based logic applied to tobacco
26 March 2025 Health Minister Defends Tobacco Strategy
Healthcare is central to Labor's pitch to voters for re-election having promised billions of dollars to bolster bulk-billing, which the Coalition promptly matched.
But there is little for mental health and the booming illegal tobacco trade has also punched a $6.9 billion hole in the books as a result of falling tobacco excise revenue.
Producer: Jacqueline Breen - ABC
26 March 2025 Budget Forecast To Lose $7B As Consumers Turn From Legal Tobacco
Huge losses in government revenue from tobacco tax are expected, as smokers increasingly look to cheaper products found on the black market.
by ABC
26 March 2025 Raising Cig Taxes & Tobacco Wars A Serious Budget Problem
The tobacco wars just shot a $6.9bn hole in the federal budget. A wave of crime in otherwise quiet suburbs has now become a structural drag on the nation’s finances.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, admits there’s “a very serious problem” that must be addressed. But there’s disagreement about how to best solve it. And until that happens, major healthcare policies – including those that deal with the damage caused by tobacco – become harder to pay for.
26 March 2025 Australia Refuses To Learn It's Lesson On Tobacco Taxes
"There’s a giant, multi-billion dollar black hole in the budget, and it’s all down to unintended consequences that successive governments refused to admit were happening."
23 March 2025 Vic Gov Back 25% Of Vaping Recommendations
"The state government has come under fire after leaving local councils to enforce the new tobacco licence scheme, with officers fearing they could be “targeted” if they manage the raging illegal activity."
21 March 2025 Tobacco Lobby Claims Vaping Is Displacing Smoking
"E-cigarette companies, including giants such as British American Tobacco, have actively lobbied governments in New Zealand and Australia to weaken existing vape regulations while preventing the introduction of stricter ones.
As part of their argument, they claim that for adolescents in New Zealand, the use of e-cigarettes (vaping) might be “displacing” cigarette smoking. They argue young people are opting for vapes over traditional cigarettes.
Their key piece of evidence for this claim is an influential study published in Lancet Public Health in 2020."
Authors: Becky Freeman & others
Flaws and Omissions in the Article
Mischaracterization of Vaping’s Harm Profile:
The article leans heavily on the narrative that vaping is contributing to adolescent smoking uptake without acknowledging the significant evidence supporting vaping as a safer alternative for adult smokers and an effective smoking cessation tool.
Public Health England, Cancer Research UK, and the Royal College of Physicians have all stated that vaping is far less harmful than smoking and has contributed to declines in adult smoking rates in several countries.
Evidence suggests that vaping is not a significant gateway to smoking, particularly when access is properly regulated.
Omission of Key Evidence on Youth Smoking Trends:
The article suggests that vaping is slowing the decline in smoking rates without adequately considering:
New Zealand’s declining youth smoking rates, which still remain historically low despite increases in vaping.
Studies in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand consistently show that regular vaping among never-smokers remains low and most youth vapers are either former smokers or those who would have experimented with smoking anyway.
Failure to Consider Tobacco Harm Reduction Framework:
The article overlooks the well-supported Tobacco Harm Reduction (THR) model, which recognizes vaping as a viable alternative for smokers who struggle to quit using traditional methods.
The Royal College of Physicians explicitly endorses vaping as a safer substitute for smoking, emphasizing its public health benefits.
Potential Misinterpretation of Vaping’s Influence:
The claim that vaping may be contributing to smoking uptake lacks strong evidence. Recent reviews show that the relationship between vaping and smoking is more likely due to common risk factors (e.g., risk-taking behavior) rather than causation.
The article doesn’t sufficiently address the fact that youth smoking rates are declining, even in regions with high vaping prevalence.
Framing Bias:
The article repeatedly ties vaping to Big Tobacco influence. While it's true that tobacco companies have invested in vaping products, this doesn’t inherently negate the harm reduction potential of regulated vaping for adult smokers.
Focusing on industry motives may distract from the independent evidence that vaping can reduce smoking rates and improve public health.
Key Counter-Evidence from Reliable Sources
NHS (UK), Cancer Research UK, and Public Health England state that vaping is one of the most effective methods for quitting smoking and contributes positively to public health.
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) also endorses vaping as a harm minimization tool for smokers struggling to quit.
Evidence shows that most youth vapers are current or former smokers, and regular vaping among never-smokers is rare.
While the article presents a valuable critique of the 2020 Lancet Public Health study, it selectively emphasizes potential negative effects of vaping while downplaying evidence that vaping has reduced smoking rates and carries significantly lower risks than combustible tobacco. By failing to fully engage with the established evidence supporting vaping's harm reduction role, the article risks misleading policymakers and the public.
Balanced public health strategies should prioritize:
Strict regulations to prevent youth access.
Education campaigns that clarify vaping’s relative safety for adult smokers.
Support for vaping as a cessation tool, while discouraging non-smokers and youth from starting.
19 March 2025 Vaping & Black Market Burn $31B Hole
The tax office and Border Force’s joint illicit tobacco team has, between mid-2018 and mid-2024, found and destroyed 253 hectares of tobacco crops and 21.8 million illegal cigarettes.
“By overly restricting the sale of legal, regulated nicotine, consumers have had little choice but to turn to the black market,” Martin said.
“This has led to disastrous, sometimes fatal consequences, including more than 200 arson attacks around the country as a result of rival organised crime groups fighting for control of the market.”
19 March 2025 Agressively Taxing Tobacco Black Market Flourishes
"The black market for tobacco has flourished in the shadow of Australia’s aggressive tax policy, creating a lucrative opportunity for organised crime. As legal tobacco prices have soared, criminal networks have profited by undercutting legal products, offering smokers a cheaper alternative that circumvents regulation and taxation. This underground economy has expanded dramatically in recent years, fuelling criminal turf wars and undercutting tax revenues.
by Edward Jegasothy
19 March 2025 Calls For Freeze To Combat Black Market
"Tobacco excise collections sank to a nine-year low of $9.7 billion last financial year as smokers turn to the black market for cheaper cigarettes, costing the three wholesalers market share. Tobacco excise is supposed to deter Australians from smoking, which causes cancer."
17 March 2025 Tasmania Vaping Ban Bill
"Tasmania has become the first Australian state to completely ban over-the-counter vape sales in favour of a prescription-only model.
Under the newly passed Public Health Amendment (Vaping) Bill 2024, Tasmanians over 18 will only be able to buy vaping products from pharmacies with a valid prescription"
🔍 1. Lack of Scientific Balance
The article presents only one side of the vaping debate — repeating talking points from government officials and anti-vaping lobbyists — without presenting any counterarguments from medical professionals who support vaping as a harm reduction tool. For example:
No mention is made of international public health bodies, such as Public Health England or the Royal College of Physicians, which have stated that vaping is significantly less harmful than smoking.
The article ignores that many former smokers rely on vaping as their only successful quitting method, especially in jurisdictions where access is adult-regulated rather than restricted.
🚨 2. Misleading Public Health Framing
The claim that this is a “landmark decision for public health” is presented uncritically. However, in reality, prohibition has failed elsewhere:
Tasmania’s move to eliminate over-the-counter vape sales will likely push vapers back to smoking, or fuel the illicit market — a trend seen across other Australian states since similar federal policies began rolling out.
The black market consequences (such as youth access to unregulated products and links to organized crime) are ignored entirely, despite being a growing problem nationally.
🧒 3. Youth Vaping Alarmism Without Context
The repeated focus on “youth vaping” sidesteps several important facts:
The article fails to note that 96% of vapers in Australia are adults, and that prescription-only policies do nothing to stop youth accessing illegal products online or via peers.
Youth vaping prevention does not require adult prohibition. Retail regulation, ID enforcement, and quality standards — all possible under a legal model — would do more to protect young people without punishing adult smokers seeking safer alternatives.
🧪 4. Ignoring Evidence from Harm Reduction Science
Statements like “vaping remains a public health risk” are misleading when presented in isolation.
The article does not distinguish between relative and absolute risk. Vaping is not risk-free, but it is dramatically safer than smoking — and that context is vital.
No reference is made to clinical studies, including Cochrane reviews, showing vaping is more effective for quitting smoking than traditional nicotine replacement therapy.
💬 5. No Public Voice from Affected Consumers
Despite quoting health bureaucrats and CEOs, the article completely omits the voices of actual vapers — especially adults who have quit smoking using vaping.
Where is the representation of those who will now be forced to return to cigarettes or the black market?
The lack of consumer perspective makes this article read more like a government media release than journalism.
🧱 6. Tasmanian Isolationism
This policy goes further than federal law, setting up a patchwork system where Tasmanians are penalised simply for living in the “wrong” state. It risks isolating the state both economically and socially:
Tourists and residents who vape legally in other parts of Australia will now be criminalised in Tasmania.
The government is effectively medicalising a consumer product, despite vaping being less harmful than many over-the-counter drugs, such as paracetamol or alcohol.
🧾 Summary: A Policy Based on Panic, Not Evidence
Tasmania's prescription-only vaping policy may be framed as a victory for youth protection, but in reality, it reflects:
✅ A failure to distinguish harm reduction from harm promotion✅ A disregard for adult smokers and ex-smokers✅ A dangerous overreliance on prohibition rather than regulation✅ A missed opportunity to follow the lead of countries like the UK and New Zealand, where regulated adult access has driven record low smoking rates
12 March 2025 Mark Butler ABC Breakfast
GLENDAY: Just lastly, I want to put some context around this. I mean, black market cigarette packets can cost less than $20, and legal cigarettes, which have government taxes, can cost well over $50. That's a huge difference. And there's a view among law enforcement that this is perceived by criminals to be a lower risk enterprise than hard drug or heroin trafficking. Given the big money to be made, are you ever going to be able to get rid of the black market?
BUTLER: That's why we have to change that risk reward equation for criminal gangs and for, frankly, the retailers that are facilitating this by selling these cigarettes. The price is high in Australia. We have some of the most expensive cigarettes and we have some of the lowest rates of smoking and those two things are directly related. But countries that have much cheaper, legal cigarettes like the US the UK, many others, they still have a thriving criminal trade in cigarettes as well. I don't buy this argument that if we froze or reduced the price of legal cigarettes somehow, that would cause magically the criminal activity to cease and disappear. The only way to shut down this is enforcement is tracking them down, putting them in the dock, and ultimately seizing their profits.
Mark Butler is Wrong, Here's Why:
Mark Butler’s comments reflect a heavy focus on enforcement as the primary solution to Australia’s growing black market cigarette trade. While enforcement is a necessary component, his statements overlook key evidence on what truly drives illicit tobacco markets and ignores the role of harm reduction strategies. Here's a detailed critique:
1. Over-Simplification of Enforcement as the Sole Solution
Claim: "The only way to shut down this is enforcement... tracking them down, putting them in the dock, and seizing their profits."
Flawed Strategy: Butler’s assertion that enforcement alone is the key to stopping black market tobacco is overly simplistic and ignores evidence-based public health strategies. Despite intensified enforcement, Australia's illicit tobacco market continues to grow, illustrating that this approach is not working in isolation.
Real-World Evidence: Countries with a more balanced strategy—including accessible harm reduction tools like vaping—have seen greater success in reducing both smoking rates and illicit trade. For example, the UK has managed to reduce smoking rates without driving significant black-market growth by allowing regulated nicotine vaping products.
Recommendation: While enforcement is necessary, Butler should advocate for a comprehensive public health strategy that combines enforcement with improved access to safer, regulated alternatives like vaping.
2. Ignoring the Role of Excessive Taxation in Fueling the Illicit Market
Claim: "I don't buy this argument that if we froze or reduced the price of legal cigarettes... that would cause magically the criminal activity to cease and disappear."
Misleading Dismissal: While reducing cigarette prices is not a simple fix, Butler’s dismissal of taxation’s role in driving illicit trade ignores established economic evidence.
Economic Reality: Excessive tobacco taxes widen the price gap between legal and illicit products, making black-market cigarettes an attractive alternative for smokers who struggle with affordability. While taxes play an important role in discouraging smoking, overly aggressive price hikes risk pushing smokers into illegal markets rather than quitting altogether.
Australia's Unique Problem: Australia has some of the highest cigarette prices in the world, yet this has contributed to the largest black market tobacco trade per capita in the developed world. Butler’s failure to acknowledge this link is concerning.
Recommendation: Butler should recognize that while high cigarette prices have public health benefits, they must be coupled with viable alternatives like regulated vaping to reduce demand for illicit products.
3. Failure to Promote Harm Reduction Strategies
Claim: "This trade... undermines our public health efforts to stamp out smoking."
Missed Opportunity: Butler’s emphasis on enforcement ignores the most effective tool available for reducing smoking rates—harm reduction through vaping. The success of vaping as a quitting aid has been demonstrated in multiple studies, and public health bodies like the Royal College of Physicians, NHS, and Public Health England actively promote vaping as a safer alternative for smokers.
Current Policy's Role in Driving Illicit Trade: Australia's prescription-only model for nicotine vaping products has made it harder for adult smokers to access regulated alternatives, driving demand for illicit and unregulated products.
Recommendation: Butler should promote regulated nicotine vaping products as a safer and more effective alternative for smokers, reducing the demand for both legal and illicit cigarettes.
4. Misleading Comparison Between Australia and Other Countries
Claim: "Countries that have much cheaper cigarettes like the US and UK still have a thriving criminal trade in cigarettes."
Selective Evidence: While illicit trade exists in all countries, Butler ignores the critical difference between these markets: countries like the UK offer regulated, accessible alternatives such as vaping. This reduces reliance on black-market tobacco while still lowering smoking rates.
UK’s Balanced Strategy: The UK has achieved record-low smoking rates through a combination of accessible vaping products, public education campaigns, and proportionate tobacco taxes.
Recommendation: Butler should look to international models that balance enforcement with access to regulated harm reduction products, which have been proven to reduce both smoking rates and illicit trade.
5. Misleading Narrative on the Role of Retailers
Claim: "Retailers... selling these cigarettes... are bankrolling some of the worst criminal gangs."
Exaggerated Blame: While some retailers knowingly sell illicit products, others may unknowingly engage with suppliers distributing illegal goods. Blaming retailers without addressing the root causes—like excessive taxation and lack of safer alternatives—ignores the economic pressures that fuel this trade.
Policy-Induced Market Shift: Australia’s restrictive policies have driven legitimate retailers out of the regulated nicotine market, creating an opportunity for black-market suppliers to thrive.
Recommendation: Rather than vilifying retailers, Butler should focus on improving retail licensing systems to support businesses that adhere to legal standards while giving consumers access to safer alternatives.
Mark Butler’s strategy is overly reliant on enforcement while failing to address the root causes of Australia’s thriving illicit tobacco market. His dismissal of excessive taxation’s role, combined with a refusal to embrace harm reduction strategies like regulated vaping, reveals a narrow and ineffective public health approach.
Recommended Public Health Strategy for Australia:
✅ Introduce a regulated retail model for nicotine vaping products to provide adult smokers with a safer alternative.
✅ Maintain appropriate tobacco taxation levels but combine this with better access to harm reduction products.
✅ Expand public education campaigns highlighting vaping as a safer alternative for adult smokers.
✅ Strengthen retailer licensing systems to reduce illicit sales while providing legal access to regulated products.
✅ Combine targeted enforcement with alternative strategies to reduce consumer demand for illicit products.
Australia's smoking rates can be further reduced with a balanced approach that integrates enforcement with evidence-based harm reduction strategies.
12 March 2025 Mark Butler ABC Radio Enforcement Isn't Working
EPSTEIN: So I just wonder if you think enforcement is making a difference? Border Force is already seizing four times as many cigarettes as they were just six years ago. So it's not that people don't think enforcement is a bad idea, but is it working? I mean, we've got more illegal tobacco and more tobacco fires than we've ever had and Border Force is taking in four times as many illegal cigarettes as they were just a few years ago. Is the enforcement working? BUTLER: No, in the sense it's still an activity that you see in the community. We've got to do more, which is why we're allocating $160 million additional funds."
Mark Butler Is Wrong On Many Levels, and here is why:
Mark Butler's interview highlights Australia's aggressive stance on tobacco enforcement, yet his approach raises significant concerns about its effectiveness, its neglect of harm reduction strategies, and its misunderstanding of the broader public health landscape.
Here's a detailed critique:
1. Over-Reliance on Enforcement Despite Evidence of Ineffectiveness
Claim: "This is criminal activity... We're going to track them down, bring them to justice, and seize their profits."
Reality: Butler’s strong focus on enforcement as the primary solution overlooks key public health principles. While enforcement is essential in tackling organized crime, research shows that enforcement alone has limited impact on reducing illicit tobacco markets.
Escalating Enforcement with Limited Results: Despite Border Force seizing 1.3 billion cigarettes in six months—a significant increase—Butler admitted this hasn’t stopped the illicit market from thriving. This suggests that enforcement without alternative strategies is failing.
Key Evidence: Countries like the UK, which focus on accessible and regulated alternatives like vaping, have seen greater reductions in smoking rates without the same level of black-market growth.
Recommendation: Butler should prioritize harm reduction strategies alongside enforcement to address the demand for cheap alternatives, reducing reliance on illicit markets.
2. Failure to Recognize the Link Between Excessive Taxation and Illicit Trade
Claim: "The answer is not to drop the price... What that will do is drive smoking rates up."
Selective Use of Evidence: While Butler correctly notes that higher cigarette prices are linked to lower smoking rates, the relationship weakens when prices become excessive. Extreme price hikes often push smokers toward unregulated, illicit products rather than quitting.
Real-World Impact: Australia's rapid tobacco excise increases have created an enormous price gap between legal and illegal cigarettes. This has made illicit trade a more attractive option for price-conscious smokers.
Contradictory Global Data: Countries with lower cigarette prices, like the United States, also face illicit trade issues. However, Australia's unusually high cigarette prices have incentivized organized crime to exploit the profit gap even further.
Key Evidence: Studies show that disproportionately high cigarette prices may reduce legal sales but do not significantly accelerate smoking cessation without providing viable alternatives like regulated vaping.
Recommendation: While maintaining a tax deterrent, the government should balance this with accessible, regulated alternatives such as vaping to help smokers quit.
3. Misplaced Focus on Illicit Tobacco While Ignoring Safer Alternatives
Claim: "Enforcement is what it’s all about... That's what this package is all about."
Neglect of Harm Reduction: Butler's exclusive focus on enforcement ignores the proven success of harm reduction strategies like vaping. Research shows that vaping is one of the most effective tools for quitting smoking and is substantially less harmful than cigarettes.
Missed Opportunity: Australia’s prescription-only model for vaping has inadvertently contributed to a booming black market in unregulated vaping products. This is a critical factor in the overall increase in illicit trade, yet Butler fails to address this.
Key Evidence: The Royal College of Physicians and Public Health England strongly advocate for promoting vaping as a safer alternative for smokers. Countries that allow regulated nicotine vaping products have seen faster declines in smoking rates.
Recommendation: Butler should adopt a balanced public health strategy that includes supporting regulated vaping products as part of a harm reduction model.
4. Misleading Framing of Taxation as a Solely Effective Strategy
Claim: "Ask any expert anywhere in the world and they'll say price is probably the most important factor in driving down smoking rates."
Oversimplification: While price is a key factor, it is not the only effective strategy. Evidence shows that smokers are more likely to quit when they have access to effective alternatives such as regulated vapes, nicotine replacement therapies, and professional cessation support.
Public Health Failure: Australia’s smoking decline has stagnated in recent years, largely because excessive taxation and vaping restrictions have driven smokers toward illicit markets rather than toward quitting.
Key Evidence: The UK’s integrated strategy combining taxation, public health campaigns, and legal vaping access has driven the nation’s smoking rates down faster than Australia’s.
Recommendation: Butler should shift focus toward a comprehensive strategy that combines tax deterrence with accessible harm reduction tools like vaping.
5. Ignoring the Role of Australia’s Prescription-Only Vaping Model
Claim: "We'll be expanding enforcement to fight this trade."
Regulatory Failure: Australia’s prescription-only model has failed to provide smokers with safer alternatives, leaving them vulnerable to black-market sales of both cigarettes and unregulated vapes.
Missed Harm Reduction Opportunity: Countries like New Zealand and the UK have seen significant declines in smoking by making vaping products legally accessible while tightly regulating their sale.
Key Evidence: Research consistently shows that smokers who switch to regulated vaping products are more likely to quit successfully compared to those who attempt to quit unaided.
Recommendation: Butler should advocate for a shift toward a licensed retail model for regulated vaping products, ensuring adults have safe access to legal alternatives.
Mark Butler’s approach is heavily enforcement-focused, relying on punitive measures that have thus far failed to stem the illicit tobacco trade. His refusal to recognize the role of excessive taxation, combined with Australia’s restrictive vaping policies, is contributing to the very problem he is trying to solve.
Recommended Public Health Strategy for Australia:
✅ Introduce a regulated retail model for nicotine vaping products, with strict age verification and sales controls.✅ Combine enforcement with harm reduction strategies to reduce demand for illicit products.✅ Prioritize education campaigns promoting vaping as a safer alternative for adult smokers.✅ Encourage access to smoking cessation support services in combination with safer nicotine products.
Australia has the potential to improve public health outcomes by following international best practices that combine targeted enforcement with practical harm reduction strategies.
12 March 2025 Mark Butler Presser $160M On Illicit Smokes
I'm very pleased to announce further funding of $160 million to double down on our efforts to stamp out this illegal market. We're sending a very clear message to organised criminal gangs who are operating this market. We're going to track you down. We're going to put you in the dock, and we're going to confiscate your criminal profits. The $160 million package I'm announcing today has a range of important elements. We will be boosting resources to federal law enforcement authorities, ABF, obviously being one of them, but also the Federal Police, the Criminal Intelligence Commission, AUSTRAC and others who have very significant experience and expertise in tracking down the money."
Mark Butler Is Wrong On Many Levels, and here is why:
Mark Butler's recent press conference heavily emphasized enforcement strategies, targeting organized crime, and expanding policing efforts to curb illegal tobacco and vaping markets. While tackling criminal activity is crucial, his statements reflect a flawed public health strategy that leans heavily on punitive measures rather than evidence-based approaches to reduce smoking rates effectively. Here's a detailed critique based on scientific evidence and harm reduction principles:
1. Overemphasis on Enforcement Without Addressing Root Causes
Claim: "The answer to illegal cigarettes is enforcement and prosecution."
Flawed Strategy: While law enforcement is an important tool to reduce criminal activity, relying solely on enforcement ignores the underlying causes of illicit markets. Australia's restrictive vaping laws and extremely high cigarette prices have created a thriving black market.
Evidence-Based Solution Ignored: Countries like the UK, which have regulated the sale of nicotine vaping products while ensuring safe access for adult smokers, have successfully reduced smoking rates without the same scale of black market issues.
Black Market Growth Linked to Policy: Australia's prescription-only model for nicotine vapes has inadvertently pushed vapers and smokers into unregulated markets where illicit products are sold freely.
Recommendation: Rather than focusing solely on enforcement, Australia should adopt a regulated retail model that provides access to legal nicotine vaping products for adult smokers, reducing the incentive for black market purchases.
2. Inaccurate Framing of Vaping as a Major Health Threat
Claim: "We saw this in vaping as well. It's a market that exploded under the former government's eyes without any activity."
Distortion of the Evidence: Butler’s comment implies that vaping is inherently dangerous, which contradicts substantial evidence showing that vaping is significantly less harmful than smoking.
Vaping as Harm Reduction: Public health experts, including the Royal College of Physicians and NHS, strongly support vaping as a safer alternative for smokers attempting to quit.
Youth Vaping Overblown: Data shows that most youth vaping is experimental and short-term, while regular use among never-smokers remains rare.
Recommendation: Butler’s rhetoric risks deterring adult smokers from switching to vaping, a harm reduction tool that has been shown to be one of the most effective smoking cessation methods.
3. Misplaced Blame on Pricing as the Sole Driver of Illicit Tobacco
Claim: "The answer is not to drop the price... we still have a thriving criminal market."
Partial Truth: While high tobacco prices are an effective deterrent against smoking, excessive taxation can fuel illicit trade. Research shows that overpriced legal products often push consumers toward cheaper, unregulated alternatives.
Global Evidence Ignored: Countries like New Zealand and the UK have balanced high cigarette taxes with accessible vaping products, reducing both smoking rates and illicit market growth.
Recommendation: The government should combine high tobacco taxes with regulated, affordable alternatives like legal nicotine vaping products to offer safer options for smokers.
4. Conflating Illicit Tobacco with Vaping in a Misleading Way
Claim: "Illegal cigarettes undermine our efforts in two ways... by providing cheap cigarettes and getting around public health measures."
False Equivalence: While illegal cigarettes present a serious concern, Butler wrongly groups vaping into the same category, despite regulated vaping products being far safer.
Misleading Messaging: Conflating vaping with organized crime perpetuates harmful stigma that undermines its proven role as a quitting aid.
Recommendation: Clear, evidence-based communication is critical. Public messaging should distinguish between regulated nicotine vaping products (which are intended for harm reduction) and unregulated black-market items.
5. Failure to Acknowledge the Failures of Australia’s Prescription-Only Model
Claim: "The vaping market exploded under the former government's eyes without any activity."
Ignoring Policy Failures: The explosion of the illicit vaping market occurred largely because Australia's strict prescription-only model failed to provide smokers with safe and legal access to vaping products.
Expert Recommendations Overlooked: Health experts such as Dr Colin Mendelsohn have consistently argued that Australia’s regulatory model has been ineffective, driving consumers to unsafe black-market products.
Recommendation: Australia should move toward a licensed retail model that restricts youth access while ensuring adult smokers can obtain regulated nicotine vaping products safely.
6. Neglecting the Role of Harm Reduction
Claim: "The best way to deprive everyone of this revenue... is to stop smoking in this country."
Lack of Practical Strategy: While reducing smoking is the ultimate goal, Butler fails to acknowledge the role of harm reduction in achieving this. Evidence shows that vaping is one of the most effective quitting aids.
Ignoring Evidence-Based Solutions: Countries that have adopted a harm reduction approach—like the UK—have experienced faster declines in smoking rates.
Recommendation: Public health policies should promote vaping as a safer alternative for smokers who cannot quit using traditional methods.
7. Confusing Messaging on Illicit Retailers
Claim: "Retailers must realize that they are funding some of the worst criminal gangs."
Exaggerated Narrative: While criminal elements are involved in illicit tobacco sales, this rhetoric risks painting small businesses, some of whom may unknowingly sell unregulated products, as intentional criminals.
Policy Failure’s Role Ignored: The growth of these retailers is largely a result of Australia’s overly restrictive approach to nicotine vaping, which has driven consumers toward unregulated products.
Recommendation: A regulated retail system that allows licensed outlets to sell safe nicotine products would reduce the influence of criminal networks.
Mark Butler’s press conference reflects a deeply flawed understanding of effective tobacco control and harm reduction. His focus on enforcement overlooks the critical need for accessible, regulated alternatives to both smoking and illicit vaping products. By mischaracterizing vaping as a public health threat, failing to address the shortcomings of Australia’s prescription-only model, and ignoring global evidence supporting vaping as a smoking cessation tool, Butler risks undermining legitimate public health efforts.
Recommended Strategy for Australia:
✅ Introduce a regulated retail model for nicotine vaping products with strict age verification.
✅ Educate the public on the relative risks of vaping vs smoking.
✅ Implement targeted public health campaigns to inform smokers of safer alternatives.
✅ Strengthen enforcement against unregulated products while ensuring adult smokers can access legal nicotine vapes.
Australia has the opportunity to embrace a balanced strategy that reduces smoking rates, undermines the black market, and protects public health
8 March 2025 Vaping Epidemic Grips WA
A new generation of addiction has emerged in Western Australia, with thousands of young people falling victim to the allure of vaping.
One of those youngsters is 22-year-old Caileen Paynter, whose experience serves as a cautionary tale, highlighting the insidious nature of vaping and its profound impact on both health and financial wellbeing.
"I was attached to the hip with my vape, take it in the car, sleep with it, I would get up to in the night," she said.
Rachael Clifford & Ashley Ried Are Wrong & Here Is why:
Critical Review of the Article: "Vaping epidemic grips Western Australia, sparking urgent action" by Rachael Clifford and comments by Ashley Reid
This article highlights concerns about vaping in Western Australia, particularly focusing on youth uptake, addiction, and perceived risks. While these concerns are valid, the narrative and arguments presented lack balance and fail to reflect the broader scientific evidence on vaping, particularly its role in harm reduction and smoking cessation.
Key Issues with the Article's Claims
1. Exaggeration of a "Vaping Epidemic"
The article characterizes vaping as an "epidemic" gripping Western Australia. While youth experimentation with vaping has increased, describing it as an "epidemic" is both alarmist and misleading. According to evidence from the UK and Australia:
Youth vaping is predominantly experimental and infrequent. Regular vaping among never-smokers remains uncommon.
Studies show that most youth who vape are either current or former smokers, indicating that vaping is often replacing smoking rather than introducing non-smokers to nicotine addiction.
By framing vaping as an “epidemic,” the article risks stoking public fear rather than encouraging evidence-based understanding.
2. Overstated Claims of Vaping Addiction
The personal story of Caileen Paynter describes intense dependency on vaping. While some vapers may develop habitual use, nicotine addiction through vaping is generally less severe than cigarette addiction. Research indicates:
Nicotine dependence from vaping is lower than from smoking. The speed and intensity of nicotine delivery in cigarettes is much higher, making cigarettes significantly more addictive.
For many smokers, vaping is a highly effective quitting aid, often succeeding where other methods have failed.
While addiction concerns are legitimate, this should be contextualized against the far greater risk of smoking.
3. Misrepresentation of Vaping’s Health Risks
The article implies severe health risks from vaping without acknowledging the substantial evidence that vaping is far less harmful than smoking:
The NHS and Public Health England have consistently stated that vaping carries only a small fraction of the risks of smoking.
The Royal College of Physicians concludes that the long-term risks of vaping are unlikely to exceed 5% of the harm caused by smoking.
While vaping is not risk-free, portraying it as a serious public health threat distorts the established scientific consensus.
4. Fear of Rising Teen Smoking Rates
Ashley Reid’s concern that vaping may lead to increased youth smoking is unfounded based on current evidence:
Studies consistently show that vaping is not a gateway to smoking. Rather, vaping is largely displacing youth smoking, contributing to falling smoking rates in populations where vaping is widely available.
Data from countries like the UK demonstrate that youth smoking rates have continued to decline despite rising vaping rates.
Claims that vaping will reverse hard-won public health gains are speculative and unsupported by robust evidence.
5. Misplaced Focus on Pharmacy-Only Access
The article highlights the failure of Australia’s prescription-only model for vaping, yet does not acknowledge the unintended consequences of this approach:
Australia’s strict regulations have inadvertently fueled a thriving black market for vaping products, which is dominated by unregulated and potentially dangerous products.
In contrast, countries like New Zealand and the UK, which allow regulated retail access to vapes, have seen safer product markets and better success in helping smokers quit.
Restricting vaping to pharmacies fails to meet the demand of adult smokers seeking safer alternatives to cigarettes and has proven ineffective in controlling youth access.
Balanced Recommendations for Public Health Policy
Instead of sensationalizing vaping, a more effective strategy would involve:
✅ Providing accurate information about vaping’s relative risks compared to smoking.
✅ Regulating vaping products to ensure quality control and reduce the black market.
✅ Educating young people about the risks of vaping while promoting vaping as a harm reduction tool for adult smokers.
✅ Making regulated vaping products available to adult smokers as a safer alternative to combustible tobacco.
The Cancer Council’s approach risks undermining tobacco harm reduction efforts. Overstating the risks of vaping while ignoring its benefits as a quitting aid could discourage smokers from switching to a significantly less harmful alternative. A balanced, evidence-based approach—one that promotes vaping as a smoking cessation tool while limiting youth access—is the most effective public health strategy.
6 March 2025 Do Vapes Stop Smokers From Quitting Tobacco
Despite claims from the global tobacco industry that vaping can help people cut back on cigarettes, new research from the U-S has found it actually could be making it harder for smokers to quit.
A study from the University of California San Diego looked at over 6,000 smokers across the United States, and found vaping prolongs both smoking and nicotine dependence.
John Pierce, Professor at the School of Public Health, U-C San Diego Is Extremely Wrong & Here Is why:
Claim 1: Vaping prolongs both smoking and nicotine dependence.
Fact Check & Rebuttal:
The claim that vaping prolongs smoking contradicts substantial evidence that vaping is one of the most effective smoking cessation tools available. Studies show that vaping helps smokers reduce or quit smoking altogether. The Public Health England (now OHID) 2022 report found that vaping is the most popular method for quitting smoking in England and has contributed to declining smoking rates.
The NHS clearly states that “Nicotine vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking and is one of the most effective tools for quitting smoking”.
While some dual-use cases exist (where individuals vape and smoke simultaneously), this is often a transition phase before full cessation. Evidence shows that complete switching to vaping drastically reduces toxin exposure and harm compared to smoking.
Claim 2: Vaping is less effective than quitting cold turkey or using other NRT products.
Fact Check & Rebuttal:
This statement contradicts strong evidence supporting vaping’s effectiveness as a quitting aid. According to the NHS, “Nicotine vapes are one of the most effective stop smoking aids”.
A comprehensive evidence review led by Dr Colin Mendelsohn concluded that vaping is at least as effective, if not more so, than nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) in helping people quit smoking.
The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) 2022 report found that vaping was associated with higher quit rates than traditional NRT methods.
Cold turkey quitting has a notoriously low success rate. Evidence suggests that vaping provides a practical alternative for smokers who have repeatedly failed with other methods.
Claim 3: Vaping maintains addiction.
Fact Check & Rebuttal:
While nicotine is addictive, evidence shows that vaping is generally less dependence-forming than smoking. The Royal College of Physicians states that nicotine in vaping is relatively benign in the doses used in e-cigarettes.
Vaping users tend to reduce nicotine strength over time, often leading to cessation or very low dependence levels. Additionally, for people unable to quit using other methods, maintaining a reduced-risk form of nicotine use through vaping is preferable to continued smoking.
Claim 4: Vaping has only been widespread for 5-6 years.
Fact Check & Rebuttal:
This statement is misleading. Vaping has been commercially available since the mid-2000s, with widespread use increasing significantly around 2010-2012 in various parts of the world. Evidence on vaping's relative safety, efficacy, and patterns of use has been studied extensively for over a decade.
Claim 5: Most vapers are young people.
Fact Check & Rebuttal:
This is a common misconception. Studies consistently show that most adult vapers are current or former smokers using vaping as a harm reduction tool or cessation aid.
According to Cancer Research UK, regular vaping among never-smokers remains uncommon.
The ASH Youth Survey confirms that youth vaping is more likely experimental and infrequent, with regular vaping being rare among non-smokers.
The NHS emphasizes that vaping is not for children or non-smokers, but when used appropriately by smokers, it is highly effective in reducing harm.
Claim 6: Nicotine vaping caused EVALI (E-cigarette or Vaping Product Use-Associated Lung Injury).
Fact Check & Rebuttal:
This claim is incorrect. EVALI was linked to illicit THC cartridges contaminated with vitamin E acetate — not legal nicotine vaping products. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed this in their investigation of the EVALI outbreak.
Nicotine e-liquids sold legally under UK and EU standards are tightly regulated for safety and do not contain vitamin E acetate.
Conclusion:
While Professor John Pierce raises some concerns, much of his argument is inconsistent with the broader evidence base. Vaping is a significantly less harmful alternative to smoking, and the best available evidence supports its role as an effective smoking cessation tool for adult smokers. Misconceptions like EVALI being caused by nicotine vaping and exaggerated claims about youth vaping misinform the public and undermine effective tobacco harm reduction strategies.
6 March 2025 Tobacco & Vapes Seller Fined $3500
Ms Hughes told the court Haddara got into the smoke store business with 'family members' in a bid to bounce back financially.
Haddara, of Hoppers Crossing in Melbourne's west, now works as a car salesman in Werribee.
He was a relatively unknown figure in Melbourne's underworld until the tobacco store bust.
In a shock move, Ms Hughes pleaded with the court to spare Haddara a conviction so he could keep his gun licence.
'Mr Haddara engages in recreational shooting with his father,' Ms Hughes said.
However Haddara was convicted and fined $3500.
4 March 2025 Australia's Tobacco Wars 4 Corners
Four Corners investigative journalist Dan Oakes uncovers the secrets of Australia’s black-market tobacco trade in Tobacco Wars. With illicit cigarettes readily available in cash-only stores and distributed by unmarked vans across the country, this investigation reveals a vast network stretching from Melbourne’s suburban tobacconists to international smuggling routes. Using concealed cameras and exclusive access to law enforcement, the Four Corners team follows the illicit pipeline, exposing the lucrative industry that is fueling organised crime while robbing the government of billions in lost revenue. Tobacco Wars investigates the high-stakes underworld where arson attacks, extortion, and deadly feuds are used to control the illegal cigarette market. As the government grapples with policy responses and law enforcement agencies struggle to disrupt smuggling syndicates, Tobacco Wars raises urgent questions about the country’s ability to curb this thriving illicit trade. With gripping undercover footage and exclusive insights from key players, Four Corners delivers a must-watch exposé on how Australia’s efforts to cut smoking rates have inadvertently fueled a dangerous and violent underworld.
CHAPTERS 00:00
Tracking tobacco 02:05
The black market 05:55
Criminal gangs 06:15
Innocent victims 08:15
Arson attacks 09:05
The Haddara family 11:10
Dubai 12:45
Khaled al-Mahamid 14:25
Australian Border Force 24:10
Public policy 26:50
Pam’s story 31:50
Tobacco control policies 31:55
Crackdowns and raids 39:00
What can be done?
4 March 2025 Govt Have Created Tobacco Black Market
"they refuse to admit that their policies are directly responsible for the breakout in violence, stating that the solution to crippling Australia’s tobacco black market is to increase law enforcement and impose stiffer penalties, with Health Minister Mark Butler saying, “Increasing the price of cigarettes right across the world is recognised as one of the most important tobacco control measures.” They just don’t seem to get it."
3 March 2025 Enforcement Needed To Stop Illegal Tobacco In Tas
There are reports of pop-up stores appearing in Tasmania selling illicit tobacco.
A caller in the north west of Tasmania tells Leon Compton on ABC Tasmania Mornings that he "can't blame" those buying from illegal sellers since they sell it cheaper.
The director of Quit Tasmania, Abby Smith, says controlling the tobacco industry is primarily an enforcement problem, not a tax problem.
“There’s lots of evidence over many years to show that price and taxes is one of the best ways to encourage people to quit,” Ms Smith said.
Abby Smith Is Extremely Wrong & Here Is why:
Price Increases Drive Black Market GrowthWhile raising cigarette prices can reduce smoking rates to some extent, excessive taxation without accessible alternatives can inadvertently fuel a booming illicit market. This has been evident in Australia, where stringent vaping regulations combined with high cigarette prices have led to a significant rise in the black market for both illicit tobacco and vapes.
Enforcement Alone Is InsufficientStrict enforcement measures can only address part of the issue. Without providing safer alternatives like regulated vaping products, demand for illicit products persists, especially among disadvantaged groups and those who struggle to quit smoking using traditional methods.
What Works Better: A Balanced Approach
Evidence shows that regulated, affordable access to safer alternatives like vaping products is crucial. Vaping has proven to be one of the most effective smoking cessation tools available and is substantially less harmful than smoking.
The best public health strategy is a combination of:
Providing accessible, regulated nicotine vaping products as a safer alternative.
Strict enforcement against the black market, combined with education campaigns promoting harm reduction.
2 March 2025 Authorities Wasted Years Cracking On Illicit Trade
Secret intelligence briefings repeatedly warned state and federal agencies that the illicit tobacco business was undermining border security as it expanded under the control of dangerous organised crime bosses.
by Nick McKenzie, Serge Negus and Chris Vedelago - SMH
2 March 2025 60 Mins- Deadly Gangwar Illegal Trade
"Exposing the criminal syndicates fighting for control of Australia’s $5 billion illegal tobacco trade."
