Big Tobacco is on high alert over a report saying the US government may only allow cigarettes with nicotine levels so low they’d no longer be addictive,and may also move to ban menthol.
Marlboro cigarettes maker Altria wants to enlist an unlikely partner in convincing consumers that nicotine isn’t as bad as they think - its regulator,the US Food and Drug Administration.
The NSW senator had no interest in vaping until a bid to ban nicotine import caught her interest.
Doctors groups welcomed a prescription model for nicotine e-cigarettes,but say a lack of locally-approved products remains a concern.
The TGA said the decision balanced consumer demand for the product as a smoking cessation aid and the potential for nicotine e-cigarettes to lead to addiction.
Tobacco prices have more than doubled over the past seven years,cutting smoking rates but driving a"smaller,growing number"of people into the illicit tobacco market.
The latest report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows Queenslanders are smoking far less than four years ago but more younger people vape.
The Marlboros maker sees cigarettes starting to become obsolete within a decade in some markets as smokers switch to alternative products for nicotine.
Sites tested are not made public,but there are seven centres monitored in WA – three in Perth and four in the regions.
MPs are looking at ways to stop a sharp lift in the sale of illicit cigarettes that is being driven by organised criminals taking advantage of the increase in prices.
The budget is addicted to nicotine. If Josh Frydenberg delivers a surplus this year,it will be due to the nation's puffers.