The black market for tobacco products in Australia has soared, according to new reports.
New data indicates criminal gangs are behind the sale of one-third of cigarettes in the country.
Australian correspondent Steve Price says this is down to increased taxes.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Across the Tasman Steve Price, morning to you.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Good day there.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Now, I can't remember who I was. This one of
the big looking around for at the banks or somebody's
not going to buy carbon credits anymore and they're going
to invest directly in green energy and they're going to
save the planet that way. How big a deal is
this whole green energy debate there?
Speaker 2 (00:19):
That's huge. I think the next election, which has to
be held within a year, is going to be fought
over two things, cost of living in the climate wars
and then fretted Upton's reignited them. I know we're going
to speak in a moment about a poll where his
popularity continues to go up. He's pushing for nuclear Anthony Albanez,
he said, nuclears no good, too expensive, takes too long.
(00:39):
But we've now got a bunch of green energy developers.
This is the Clean Energy Investor Group, which says, listen,
you know you're making it too hard for us. We're
not going to get anywhere near and Australia wants to
get to by twenty thirty, eighty five percent of Australia's
energy is renewable, and they say, you're just making it too.
(01:00):
We're not going to get there. Two percent by twenty
thirty is impossible. It was a fairly tough reaction from
this group to the government. They said the government's renewable
energy targets would be challenging. Securing environmental approval is becoming
increasingly hard and they're just not happy. They say it's
particularly affecting wind backed projects where people in communities quite
(01:25):
right there, objecting to the fact that they're going to
wake up one morning and look out the window and
they won't see the sun come up because it'll be
hidden behind a whole bunch of wind turbines. There was
a major project ticked off on the Illawarra, which is
south of Sydney the other day, and so they're just saying,
unless you get on to local council, state governments and
help help us get these permits quickly, you're never going
(01:47):
to reach your target.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
It's Telstrap dumping its carbon credit offset scheme, moving to
direct investment model, setting a more ambitious target for emissions
cuts by twenty.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Three They all do it.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
Yeah, exactly. So tobacco or run by gangs? Is it?
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Do you have very high taxes on tobacco product huge. Well,
what's happened here is that the taxes are so high
the organized crime gangs, particularly outlaw motorcycle gangs, have realized
that they can make a huge amount of money out
of this, and so they're now according to Admittedly this
survey was done by Philip Morrissey American tobacco company, but
(02:23):
they say crime gangs are selling a third of smoke
products in Australia a third, so twenty eight point six
percent of total product consumed last year, up from twenty
three percent the year before. Industry figures say that the
growth has probably pushed that number more likely up to
thirty three percent now. The Philip morris paper states this
(02:46):
would have pumped four point eighty five million in excise
into the federal government. So the federal governmentor losing out
as well. But I thought it was really interesting. The
bog who runs IgA independent supermarket, Spred Harrison. He said,
it's not said the company's sales on tobacco products, we're
declining by more than twenty percent every year, and he
predicted there'd be no legal tobacco sector in Australia within
(03:09):
five years.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Wow. Speaking of illegal these pill testing, where's that app sue.
We the previous government, labor government here, they made it
legal to test for pills at festivals. So do you
do that state by state at your place?
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Yeah, we do. You know, I've got no regard for
Dan Andrews, he was dead against it. But the new premiere,
Ja Cindra Allen has been quoted in the past of saying, look,
you know we ought to do this. We are to
make it legal. So we think a trial is probably
going to be announced within, if not this week, within
the next couple of weeks. The Royal Australian College a GPS,
they say, yep, we should be doing it. The association
(03:46):
estimates would cost two million dollars a year to run
the service. I'm not sure it's such a great idea
because maybe it's just my age, but I just figure
if you've got to tell people that you can legally
bring a pill to them and test it, you just
endorsing use of the bills.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
That's exactly right. This poll, with Dutton now the preferred
prime minister, albeit by a very small margin, have we
got a sort of a roll on? Has he got
a sort of a trend going?
Speaker 2 (04:12):
He does? I think you speak of a result. Polis
obviously the nine newspapers today, A newspoll last week with
she and I talked about wasn't all that different to
that he's been out every day. I mean he's campaigning
is if the election campaign has begun already. So worried
is the government that Anthony Albaneze he started doing Daily
Press company last week on two days. He did two
(04:35):
a day and so we're he've got a faux election
campaign running right now. Nuclear is one thing, and also
the public have woken up to the fact that the
green energy programs that the federal government is trying to
get towards are not going to work, and so they're
worried about the lights staying on through winter and the
heating staying on through winter. So he is on a
(04:56):
bit of a role. It's a big ask for him
to win an election. He's got a a lot of
seats he'd have to pick up and he's going to
knock over a lot of those tear independents. But he's
doing everything right at the moment. We'll see how long
it lasts.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
Mate, We'll catch up. Winnsday appreciate it. See price out
of Australia's For more from the mic Asking Breakfast, listen
live to news talks it'd be from six am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
Across the Tasman Steve Price, morning to you.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Good day there.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Now, I can't remember who I was. This one of
the big looking around for at the banks or somebody's
not going to buy carbon credits anymore and they're going
to invest directly in green energy and they're going to
save the planet that way. How big a deal is
this whole green energy debate there?
Speaker 2 (00:19):
That's huge. I think the next election, which has to
be held within a year, is going to be fought
over two things, cost of living in the climate wars
and then fretted Upton's reignited them. I know we're going
to speak in a moment about a poll where his
popularity continues to go up. He's pushing for nuclear Anthony Albanez,
he said, nuclears no good, too expensive, takes too long.
(00:39):
But we've now got a bunch of green energy developers.
This is the Clean Energy Investor Group, which says, listen,
you know you're making it too hard for us. We're
not going to get anywhere near and Australia wants to
get to by twenty thirty, eighty five percent of Australia's
energy is renewable, and they say, you're just making it too.
(01:00):
We're not going to get there. Two percent by twenty
thirty is impossible. It was a fairly tough reaction from
this group to the government. They said the government's renewable
energy targets would be challenging. Securing environmental approval is becoming
increasingly hard and they're just not happy. They say it's
particularly affecting wind backed projects where people in communities quite
(01:25):
right there, objecting to the fact that they're going to
wake up one morning and look out the window and
they won't see the sun come up because it'll be
hidden behind a whole bunch of wind turbines. There was
a major project ticked off on the Illawarra, which is
south of Sydney the other day, and so they're just saying,
unless you get on to local council, state governments and
help help us get these permits quickly, you're never going
(01:47):
to reach your target.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
It's Telstrap dumping its carbon credit offset scheme, moving to
direct investment model, setting a more ambitious target for emissions
cuts by twenty.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Three They all do it.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
Yeah, exactly. So tobacco or run by gangs? Is it?
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Do you have very high taxes on tobacco product huge. Well,
what's happened here is that the taxes are so high
the organized crime gangs, particularly outlaw motorcycle gangs, have realized
that they can make a huge amount of money out
of this, and so they're now according to Admittedly this
survey was done by Philip Morrissey American tobacco company, but
(02:23):
they say crime gangs are selling a third of smoke
products in Australia a third, so twenty eight point six
percent of total product consumed last year, up from twenty
three percent the year before. Industry figures say that the
growth has probably pushed that number more likely up to
thirty three percent now. The Philip morris paper states this
(02:46):
would have pumped four point eighty five million in excise
into the federal government. So the federal governmentor losing out
as well. But I thought it was really interesting. The
bog who runs IgA independent supermarket, Spred Harrison. He said,
it's not said the company's sales on tobacco products, we're
declining by more than twenty percent every year, and he
predicted there'd be no legal tobacco sector in Australia within
(03:09):
five years.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Wow. Speaking of illegal these pill testing, where's that app sue.
We the previous government, labor government here, they made it
legal to test for pills at festivals. So do you
do that state by state at your place?
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Yeah, we do. You know, I've got no regard for
Dan Andrews, he was dead against it. But the new premiere,
Ja Cindra Allen has been quoted in the past of saying, look,
you know we ought to do this. We are to
make it legal. So we think a trial is probably
going to be announced within, if not this week, within
the next couple of weeks. The Royal Australian College a GPS,
they say, yep, we should be doing it. The association
(03:46):
estimates would cost two million dollars a year to run
the service. I'm not sure it's such a great idea
because maybe it's just my age, but I just figure
if you've got to tell people that you can legally
bring a pill to them and test it, you just
endorsing use of the bills.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
That's exactly right. This poll, with Dutton now the preferred
prime minister, albeit by a very small margin, have we
got a sort of a roll on? Has he got
a sort of a trend going?
Speaker 2 (04:12):
He does? I think you speak of a result. Polis
obviously the nine newspapers today, A newspoll last week with
she and I talked about wasn't all that different to
that he's been out every day. I mean he's campaigning
is if the election campaign has begun already. So worried
is the government that Anthony Albaneze he started doing Daily
Press company last week on two days. He did two
(04:35):
a day and so we're he've got a faux election
campaign running right now. Nuclear is one thing, and also
the public have woken up to the fact that the
green energy programs that the federal government is trying to
get towards are not going to work, and so they're
worried about the lights staying on through winter and the
heating staying on through winter. So he is on a
(04:56):
bit of a role. It's a big ask for him
to win an election. He's got a a lot of
seats he'd have to pick up and he's going to
knock over a lot of those tear independents. But he's
doing everything right at the moment. We'll see how long
it lasts.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
Mate, We'll catch up. Winnsday appreciate it. See price out
of Australia's For more from the mic Asking Breakfast, listen
live to news talks it'd be from six am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
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