Kei ngā iwi, ngā mātāwaka, ngā taura here o ngā hau e whā, tēnā koutou katoa.

Te Amokura Consultants, on behalf of Director, Hauora Māori Tūmatanui, Michelle Mako warmly welcome you to be part of the nationwide kōrero around the new smoking restrictions introduced this year as part of the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Act.

On 1 January 2023, New Zealand’s smokefree laws changed to:

• Limit the number of smoked tobacco retail premises across the country to no more than 600
• Prevent tobacco being sold to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009
• Introduce very low nicotine levels for tobacco products to make them less appealing and addictive

Regulations are needed to fully deliver the legislative changes that will significantly reduce the retail availability of smoked tobacco products and reduce their appeal and addictiveness. The Government is also planning to introduce new regulations to help reduce the number of rangatahi vaping.

To ensure iwi, rōpū Māori and whānau are informed of the recent changes and have a say on the regulations, Manatū Hauora (Ministry of Health) will be hosting a series of nationwide consultation sessions during February and March 2023.

It is important to us to hear your views on this significant kaupapa.

Please register through the attached invitation if you would like to attend any of the hui below.