Legislation to require plain packaging for tobacco products

The Government will require plain packaging for tobacco products from no later than 1 July 2012.

Legislation to require plain packaging for tobacco products fact sheet (PDF 48 KB)

How will this initiative work?
What has the Government done so far to tackle smoking?

Smoking is one of the leading causes of death and disease in Australia, killing more than 15,000 Australians each year. Packaging of cigarettes and other tobacco products can glamorise smoking particularly among young people, mislead people about the relative dangers of different brands and detract from health warnings.

The Australian Government is taking action through its National Health and Hospitals Network.

The Government will require plain packaging for tobacco products from no later than 1 July 2012.

How will this initiative work?

The Government will develop legislation to specify plain packaging requirements for tobacco products. The legislation will restrict or prohibit the use of tobacco industry logos, colours, brand imagery or promotional text on tobacco product packaging other than brand names and product names in a standard colour, font style and position. The legislation will be gazetted on 1 January 2012 for implementation by 1 July 2012.

The plain packaging requirements will be designed to prevent tobacco advertising and/or promotion on tobacco product packaging in order to:

reduce the attractiveness and appeal of the product to consumers, particularly young people
reduce the ability of the tobacco package to mislead consumers, and
increase the noticeability and effectiveness of mandated health warnings.

Research on the optimal design of the plain packaging to achieve these public health objectives, and consultation on the regulatory impact of plain packaging, will be conducted in the latter half of 2010. Concerns from retailers about the handling of plain packaged products will be considered in the design of the packaging. Anti-counterfeiting measures will also be considered.

This measure will complement the Government’s record investments in health prevention, including the $872 million COAG National Partnership Agreement on Preventive Health, immunisation and health checks. These strategies will reduce health system costs, improve workplace participation and productivity, and reduce the personal and social costs of chronic diseases.

What has the Government done so far to tackle smoking?

Since 2007, the Government has:

invested $872 million with states and territories over six years in the National Partnership Agreement on Preventive Health, including $61 million for national anti-smoking social marketing campaigns
through the 2010-11 Budget provided an additional $27.8 million for targeted anti-smoking social marketing campaigns for high-risk and hard to reach groups
invested $15 million to reinvigorate the National Tobacco Strategy
invested $14.5 million in the Indigenous Tobacco Control Initiative and more than $100 million to tackle Indigenous smoking through the COAG Closing the Gap in Indigenous Health National Partnership and
continued to subsidise ‘stop smoking’ supports through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme at a cost of around $62 million annually.