Retailers Now Face $51 Million Bill

Retailers Now Face $51 Million Bill

Retailer concerns around the Ministry of Health’s reignited controversial proposal to ban tobacco retail displays has deepened today with the New Zealand Association of Convenience Store (NZACS) saying costs to comply could reach as high as $51 million dollars.

“In delivering our submission this week to the Ministry we have clearly demonstrated that a retail display ban, not only imposes significant costs to convenience stores, but cannot be backed up by the evidence,” said the New Zealand Association of Convenience Stores’ Chairman Roger Bull.

“In today’s economic climate New Zealand retailers just cannot afford this sort of unnecessary and unreasonable cost intervention by Government, especially when the international evidence does not demonstrate that a retail display ban will reduce smoking prevalence,” said Mr Bull.

“There is a fundamental need for evidence based policy development, not a policy based on wishful thinking. The evidence from retail display bans in Iceland and Canada has shown no effect on smoking prevalence”.

“NZACS is concerned that the Ministry’s proposal will achieve little aside from punishing retailers with a massive $51 million bill,” said Mr Bull.

NZACS is this week lodging with the Ministry of Health a comprehensive submission demonstrating that the Minister may have been potentially deceived by the lobbying of groups that have no experience in retailing or the operation of a convenience store business. Our submission shows:

The Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services has acknowledged that display bans have had no impact on reducing smoking in the countries that have implemented them
Thailand’s supposed retail display bans are in fact not mandated by legislation
Health Canada and Statistics Canada conclude that retail display bans have not led to any reduction in the proportion of young smokers over and above what is to be expected

Figures presented to the Ministry show that this policy idea will force between $10,000 and $15,000 in direct and other ongoing costs onto each convenience store*.

Mr Bull went on to say that the NZACS submission reinforces the Prime Minister John Key’s comments when he said “There is no international evidence that a display ban actually works and it’s hugely expensive”.

“Unfortunately while tobacco control groups lobbying for a total retail display ban don’t care about the retail sector, NZACS will stand up and draw the Government’s attention to the real-world impact of this policy proposal, ” said Mr Bull.

ENDS

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