Full evidence text [PDF 203k] - New Zealand Parliament

The tobacco industry and its products are an impediment to Māori development aspirations
and future driven goals. Māori tobacco related morbidity and pre-mature mortality rates
severely impacts on Māori economic development, health status and on the cultural
knowledge base for the next generations.
These morbidity and premature mortality rates have had a devastating impact on whanau,
the fundamental Maori social unit. This impact includes disruption to the growth and
development of tamariki and taitamariki who lose significant care giving adults from their
lives, including grandparents who traditionally have a vital role to play in child raising.
In addition to the emotional loss and trauma this causes, the whanau economic base is
undermined through meeting the financial cost of tobacco addiction and its subsequent
health effects. Northland households have among New Zealand’s lowest median incomes,
with tobacco addiction creating a drain on household budgets, especially food budgets.
The high rates of smoking among Maori women, our whare tangata, compromise the health
of our future generations pre-birth and in childhood. A baby carried by a smoking mother is
more likely to be born premature and/or low birthweight. In turn, low birthweight has life-long
consequences (e.g. increased risk of heart disease and diabetes in later life). Smoking
during pregnancy also raises the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) once a child
is born. Ongoing exposure to tobacco smoke after birth makes a baby/child more likely to
suffer respiratory infections and asthma, glue ear, and learning and behavioural difficulties.
21, 21, 22
These factors impact greatly on a child’s development and success in life.
Transmission of intergenerational knowledge, including cultural knowledge is also negatively
impacted on due to the premature death or illness of those adults who could and should be
able to carry out kaumatua roles both within whanau and on marae.
Tobacco adds no value to whanau, hapu or iwi.
RECOMMENDATIONS
We believe that the Committee should recommend a comprehensive update of the
Smokefree Environments Act 1990 and other associated legislation to develop a series of
policies that will end the sale of smoked tobacco in New Zealand by the year 2020.
This will require controls on the supply of tobacco and significant price increases. Strong
supports for smokers who wish to quit should also be incorporated.
The following recommendations are presented with the intention to remove the supply of
tobacco from our communities.
· That tobacco supply is restricted using regulations and legislative measures with the
goal of eliminating tobacco by 2020
· Systematic and annual increases in tobacco taxation by 20% per annum increasing
the price for a pack of 20 cigarettes to $20 by 2015
21 DiFranza JR, Aligne CA, Weitzman M. Prenatal and postnatal environmental tobacco smoke exposure and children's health.
Pediatrics 2004;113(4):1007-15.
21 . Haustein KO. Cigarette smoking, nicotene and pregnancy. International Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics
1999;37(9):417-27.
22 Hofhuis W, de Jongste JC, Merkus PJ. Adverse health effects of prenatal and postnatal tobacco smoke exposure on children.
Archives of Disease in Childhood 2003;88:1086-1090.
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