Fed: Ministers to ban flavoured cigarettes

AAP General News (Australia)
04-18-2008
Fed: Ministers to ban flavoured cigarettes

By Kellee Nolan

MELBOURNE, April 18 AAP - Australia's state and federal health ministers decided today
to ban fruit- and chocolate-flavoured cigarettes, saying they were used by tobacco marketers
to lure children into smoking.

The agreement came at the Australian Health Ministers' Conference in Melbourne today,
along with an accord to step up regulation of the tanning industry.

Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon said she would also ask Customs Minister Bob Debus
to ban the importation of the flavoured cigarettes.

"Each state and territory is going to take steps to make sure that these cigarettes,
which are targeted towards children, are about enticing children to smoke, will not be
available for sale," Ms Roxon said.

"We don't see that they should be in the market, there is no positive about these flavoured
cigarettes, they are particularly targeted to children."

The tobacco cigarettes, with flavours such as lemon, orange, strawberry and apple,
are currently available alongside plain-flavoured cigarettes in several states and territories.

Some governments, including NSW and South Australia, have already banned the flavoured
cigarettes.

Ministers also agreed to build on steps taken in Victoria to regulate the solarium industry.

"We have adopted some national principles that will be put in place," Ms Roxon said.

Conference chairman, Queensland Health Minister Stephen Robertson, said the Medicare
Benefits Schedule (MBS) was not discussed in detail at today's conference, despite his
call yesterday for an overhaul of the system he said was turning doctors' offices into
"turnstiles" and encouraging "six-minute medicine".

The MBS regulates doctors' payments and is accused of providing incentives for doctors
to rush consultations so they can see more patients and earn more money.

"There's a lot more work to be done, but I've certainly signalled my interest in seeing
a health care agreement that contains some fundamental reforms to the way GPs can go about
their business," Mr Robertson said today.

Ms Roxon said the Institute of Health and Welfare was looking into the issue and would
report on it.

She said health ministers could then "nut out" whether MBS reforms could be included
in a health care agreement or referred to the Health and Hospital Reform Commission for
further work.

"(That work) is progressing that debate, and I think all ministers have welcomed that
that work is being undertaken and moving forward," Ms Roxon said.

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners later released a statement calling
for the existing fee-for-service system to remain in place.

But it did call for reforms in the system to cut red tape.

Other announcements from today's conference included $15 million in federal funding
to train 24,000 mental health workers in 1,200 workshops nationwide.

AAP kn/pmu/jl/cdh

KEYWORD: HEALTH

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