Health experts are doubting whether New Zealand will achieve its Smokefree 2025 target through the Government’s current approach, while the minister responsible is grilled over her party’s reported ties to the tobacco industry.

Associate Health Minister Casey Costello, charged with leading the Government’s work on smoking regulation, defends the repeal of Labour’s smokefree generation legislation and claims the targeted reduction of the population who smoked to 5% is possible by the end of next year.

Costello today appeared at a Health Coalition Aotearoa event to discuss whether the smokefree target could be achieved.

Warned of the “emotion in the room” by organisers, Costello sought to address the “elephant in the room” – the Government’s decision to repeal the previous Labour Government’s legislation that would have meant those born after January 2009 unable to ever purchase tobacco products, which was hailed as world-leading by health experts.

“I appreciate the passionate support for the measures that were to be introduced and the dissatisfaction with the repeal,” Costello said.

“However, there’s been so much noise in this space and so many numbers thrown around but little discussion of the practical reality or caveats associated with the underpinning modeling.”

She pointed to measures within the legislation that she believed would have helped little to achieve Smokefree 2025, given they would have come into force too late.

Associate Health Minister Casey Costello (right) is grilled by Health Coalition Aotearoa co-chairman Boyd Swinburn at a coalition event discussing the Government's approach to smoking. Photo / Adam Pearse

Costello also cited data showing smoking rates had dropped from 13.3% to 6.8% since 2018, thanks in part to the accessibility of vapes. A further 80,000 people needed to quit smoking if the target was to be reached.

“If the average number over the last decade continue to quit, we’ll get there,” she said.

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That was soon challenged by public health physician Professor Chris Bullen, who believed it was unlikely next year’s goal would be achieved “not without a huge cost”.

He spoke of the damage the repeal had dealt to New Zealand’s reputation as a world leader in smoking regulation and criticised how the repeal was used to help fund the Government’s tax cuts.

“To be perfectly honest, I don’t need a tax break so that people can die down the next 10 years from the repeal,” Bullen said to loud applause from public health colleagues in the audience.

Bullen also claimed Costello’s policies had been informed by advice from the tobacco industry through her party’s (New Zealand First) links to lobbyists – something Costello frowned and shook her head at.

Bullen’s comments related to reports that two senior corporate communication positions at Philip Morris were held by people who previously held senior roles in NZ First. NZ First Minister Shane Jones has also acknowledged the involvement of one of those people in the development of party policy.

During a question and answer session, Costello blamed “media noise” for such “misconceptions” and stated she had no association with the tobacco industry, which was “not where I have gone for advice”.

She was pushed on her party’s links to the industry, to which one of Costello’s staffers in the crowd told moderator and HCA co-chairman Boyd Swinburn that Cabinet decided Government policy, not individual parties.

“I’ve had no involvement with the tobacco industry,” she restated.

After the event, Costello said she had expected the response from public health physicians, but had a dim view of their inquiries regarding her links to the tobacco industry.

“I think that was very unhelpful to their objectives.”

Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team, based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.