With the illicit market worth at least $2bn a year and the rise of illegal vapes, experts say the status quo is failing
A Victoria police crime scene at a Melbourne tobacco shop. Such fires have occurred on high streets across Victoria in the past 18 months.A Victoria police crime scene at a Melbourne tobacco shop. Such fires have occurred on high streets across Victoria in the past 18 months.
These factors make it less likely that smoking addicts will be encouraged to quit, growing the black market that has“It’s a really difficult place that the country is currently in,” says Kathryn Steadman, an associate professor from the University of Queensland.“Anybody who wants to stamp out tobacco doesn’t necessarily think is the best way to go, but we work within that framework.”
“While being initially traumatised by these experiences … it seems that he became increasingly inured to violence and conflict as a result of these childhood experiences,” the psychologist found.The first chart shows the increase in smoking and vaping-related businesses between 2016 and 2024,. The second reveals new business registration in each year, and shows vaping-related businesses are the lowest in 2024.
But, previously, he was not thought of a mastermind. He was the sort of person who involved himself in other people’s drug importations rather than organising them himself, and favoured ripping off people he thought of as weak, or using younger more expendable offenders to conduct rudimentary but potentially lucrative crimes, rather than planning more elaborate offending.
“They made a lot of money, and the value of each of those stores has grown as the excise has grown, and then the introduction of vapes is another significant stream of revenue,” he says. Hamad, 40, instead set about trying to cut his rivals off at the knees by forcing store owners to sell to him, pay him a cut, sell his illegal product, or a combination of the three, police believe. If the owner resisted, the store would be firebombed.“The history of violence is there, and known and understood,” Banks says. “Violence has been the key to it, and when you operate on a grey market, there’s a vulnerability to them .
Western Australia police referred to a media statement published in June, but otherwise did not comment, but several arson attacks have been publicly reported in the past year. The health, taxation and home affairs departments all have oversight of some part of the issue, and bodies within these departments even more specific focuses: the Australian Border Force, within Home Affairs, leads the illicit tobacco taskforce; the Therapeutic Goods Administration, within health, looks after vape restrictions.
It appears, however, there is no shortage of information available about what exactly governments can do to tackle the issue.
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