Heart Foundation welcomes passing of new tobacco laws

Media release: 7 December 2023

The Heart Foundation welcomes the passing of the Public Health (Tobacco and Other Products) Bill 2023 in Parliament today as a critical action to prevent and further reduce the heart health harm caused to people by tobacco products and nicotine addiction.

Smoking and vaping both present major heart health risks to people living in Australia: smoking makes people four times more likely to die of a heart attack or stroke, and three times more likely to die from sudden cardiac death.

Recent research also shows that e-cigarette use can lead to the uptake of tobacco smoking and increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, further demonstrating how much of a game-changer these laws are for the fight against smoking and nicotine.

The Heart Foundation commends the Parliament for its positive action today and congratulates Health Minister Mark Butler and the Australian Government for their commitment to the health and wellbeing of all people living in Australia.

Key improvements to Australia’s tobacco control measures in this legislation include:

• Updated and improved graphic health warnings on packaging
• Health promotion inserts in tobacco product packaging
• Ensuring e-cigarettes are also covered by advertising restrictions
• Limiting the use of appealing brand and variant names that imply reduced harm
• In-line with many other countries around the world, preventing the use of menthol in tobacco products
• New reporting requirements for the tobacco industry, including the reporting of ingredients used in tobacco products.

Comments attributable to Heart Foundation CEO, David Lloyd:

“The Heart Foundation commends the multi-partisan efforts of the Parliament and congratulates the Australian Government for today’s passing of new tobacco control legislation.

“Importantly, these new laws will play a key role in helping to protect a new generation of young Australians from a life sentence of poor heart health.

“We’ve come so far in this decades-long battle against smoking and now vaping. These new laws are just the support we need to continue to reduce the burden of disease and death caused by tobacco and nicotine products.”

Quit Victoria. Effects of smoking on your body. https://www.quit.org.au/tools/effects-smoking-your-body/

Banks E, Joshy G, Korda RJ, et al. Tobacco smoking and risk of 36 cardiovascular disease subtypes: fatal and non-fatal outcomes in a large prospective Australian study. BMC Med. Jul 3 2019;17(1):128. doi:10.1186/s12916-019-1351-4

Baenziger ON, Ford L, Yazidjoglou A, Joshy G, Banks E. E-cigarette use and combustible tobacco cigarette smoking uptake among non-smokers, including relapse in former smokers: umbrella review, systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open. Mar 30 2021;11(3):e045603. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-045603