9. IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY (Labour—Palmerston North) Link to this
to the Associate Minister of Health
Is she committed to reducing the number of young people who take up smoking in New Zealand; if so, what measures does she believe would achieve this?
Hon TONY RYALL (Minister of Health) Link to this
Yes. The Associate Minister is aware that although smoking prevalence has steadily declined in New Zealand over the past 50 years, smoking rates continue to be persistently high amongst Māori and young people. The Minister has asked for and is awaiting advice from the Ministry of Health on activities to speed up progress on the number of New Zealanders quitting smoking or not starting to smoke. This advice will include a wide range of policy options. One of the Government’s six key health targets is better help for smokers to quit.
Iain Lees-Galloway Link to this
Is it the Government’s position that there is no evidence that a ban on tobacco displays would reduce youth smoking rates—as stated by the Minister of Health, Tony Ryall—or is it that there is evidence to support such a ban, as stated by the Associate Minister?
It is the Associate Minister’s view that there is sufficient evidence around the issue of banning tobacco displays.
Iain Lees-Galloway Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. My question asked what the Government’s position was, as opposed to the view of the Associate Minister.
Mr SPEAKERI think the Minister gave a pretty fair answer to the question asked; certainly, I felt it was a pretty clear answer. The member still has more supplementary questions.
Iain Lees-Galloway Link to this
What draft legislation or other documentation has the Associate Minister submitted to Cabinet to progress the removal of point-of-sale tobacco advertising or to bring about an increase in the price of tobacco?
Discussions are currently under way amongst Ministers on a wide range of issues associated with smoking. The member will be aware that more support to help smokers quit is one of the six key health targets of this new Government.
Iain Lees-Galloway Link to this
What indications has the Associate Minister had from the Minister of Health, Tony Ryall, or the Prime Minister, John Key, that the Government is preparing to advance initiatives aimed at reducing the uptake of smoking amongst young New Zealanders?
The Associate Minister has quite regular discussions with the Minister of Health and the Prime Minister on a wide range of issues, and they have been talking quite frequently about the importance of one of the Government’s health targets, which is better support to help smokers quit. Ministers are very keen to support the Associate Minister in that work.
Iain Lees-Galloway Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. My question was about initiatives to reduce the uptake of smoking, not assisting people to quit. The answer given was about cessation, not uptake.
I think the member can be a wee bit pedantic about exactly what he is asking. As Speaker, I can never ensure that he will get a precise answer where he is asking what discussions have taken place between two Ministers, and it may not always be what he wants to hear. I think a reasonable answer has been given.
Iain Lees-Galloway Link to this
Would the Associate Minister support any legislation brought before the House that sought to bring about the removal of point-of-sale tobacco advertising?
The Associate Minister has given very clear views with respect to banning point-of-sale displays of cigarette advertising. She has also made it very clear she is working on a number of other initiatives as part of a multi-pronged and integrated approach to this tobacco issue.
Hon Trevor Mallard Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. It is a very similar point of order to the last one. This question, again, was a very direct one: “Would the Associate Minister support any legislation … ?”. That is how it started. There were no politics in it, and there was nothing fluffing it up. I am afraid we did not get a straight answer to that question.
Hon Gerry Brownlee Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. I think the answer was perfectly adequate. There is no legislation before the House at the present time, and, therefore, the assumption would be that the Government would be bringing in legislation. The Minister said that the Associate Minister is working on a number of initiatives. I think that clears up the position quite well.
I do not think I need further comment on this point of order. The question asked is clearly hypothetical, which is perfectly in order. But I think there are limitations on what can be expected in terms of the precision of an answer given to a hypothetical question. I think the Minister made very clear the views on such matters, and I think it was a reasonably comprehensive answer for the House.
Hon Trevor Mallard Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. I am sorry to labour this point, but if that were the case then the appropriate answer surely would have been that it would depend on the legislation, or some answer like that. There was no reference to legislation in the answer, at all.
Hon Gerry Brownlee Link to this
That is because there is no member’s legislation at the moment, so the assumption is that it would be Government legislation. The further assumption is that the Associate Minister would bring that legislation into the House, and that was not the question asked. The answer was that other measures are being worked on. That should clear away the issue of what would happen with a hypothetical piece of legislation.
I think the members make the point perfectly clear that where it is a hypothetical question, it is impossible to pin down an answer. If there was legislation in the pipeline, then questions could be more clearly answered, but with a hypothetical question I cannot ask a Minister to respond more clearly.
Iain Lees-Galloway Link to this
I seek leave of the House to table the Smoke-free Environments (Removing Tobacco Displays) Amendment Bill for introduction as a member’s bill.