Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Justice. I ask him: what action is the government taking to combat illegal and counterfeit tobacco in Australia? Is the minister aware of recent commentary about the size of the illegal tobacco trade in Australia? What is the government's response?

Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Makin for his question, a very good question on World No Tobacco Day. It is a good question, because I would like to tell the House that Customs, through its own very strong regime, has been detecting illegal tobacco in this country for some time and has been prosecuting those involved in that very illicit trade. The government is committed to combating illegal tobacco smuggling in this country. We work very closely with law enforcement agencies, with the states and, beyond our shores, with intelligence agencies to ensure we detect these transnational crimes.

A strong indication of the success since 2007 is that potential revenue losses of customs duty of more than $400 million have been prevented because of the detection and confiscation of illegal tobacco items. Last year alone, Customs was involved in 10 separate tobacco-smuggling cases, successfully prosecuting those cases, which involved 35 convictions, eight custodial sentences, and very hefty penalties and fines for those who were involved in that behaviour.

I raise those issues because the tobacco industry—for their own vested interests, I purport—have indicated that the problem is larger than it really is. Indeed, the tobacco industry have indicated that one in every six smokers in this country consumes illegal tobacco. That is an exaggerated claim. Those claims are based on reports that have been paid for by the tobacco industry themselves. So not only do they fund the Liberal Party but also they fund self-serving research to undermine the facts and to substantiate bogus claims that are being made to scare the public. They are wrong. According to the 2007 National Drug Strategy household survey, 0.2 per cent have consumed illegal tobacco for most of the time that they smoke. That is 0.2 per cent.

The tobacco industry also asserts that plain packaging will lead to a huge increase in criminal offences. That of course is not true. That is baseless. The facts are that the illegal tobacco smugglers have had ready access to software technology to replicate specific brand packaging for some years. Indeed, they have very sophisticated counterfeit items. So any transition from specific brand packaging to plain packaging will not in any way, other than perhaps a negligible way, have an effect upon crime in this area. That is very important to note given the scare campaign that has been running.

We know plain packaging will remove the allure, the romance or the glamour that some people see in smoking. It will reduce the likelihood of people, young people in particular, becoming addicts of this particular drug. The Minister for Health and Ageing has applauded the efforts of the opposition—and I do so too—in coming to the party, even if it is the case that the Leader of the Opposition came to the party kicking and screaming. I would like to commend the health minister for her good work and commend the member for Moore, the member for Hasluck, those on the other side who knew that this was good public policy and supported it not because of their political interests but because it was good public policy. This government will continue to do that. As we continue to do that, Tony Abbott will remain the Dr No of Australian politics.