{
  "id": 4015477,
  "title": "Australia's tobacco tax crushed smoking. Has it gone too far?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/australias-tobacco-tax-crushed-smoking-has-it-gone-too-far",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-28T18:49:11.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ABC News AU",
    "slug": "abc-news-au",
    "url": "https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-29/expensive-cigarettes-excise-black-market-tobacco/107076242"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Australia's tobacco tax has successfully reduced smoking rates, but now illicit cigarettes are so cheap that they account for over half of all tobacco consumed in the country. From 2020 to 2021, the illicit tobacco market grew to an estimated $3.7 billion, making it a multi-billion-dollar hole in the federal budget. Some politicians, including the opposition leader and a member of the Coalition, are now advocating for a significant reduction to the tobacco excise. If implemented, the excise cut would make legal cigarettes more competitively priced than the illicit alternatives, potentially driving more people to buy from licensed tobacco stores like Mat Evans'. However, while this policy may curb smoking, health advocates warn that it could also reverse the progress made in reducing smoking rates over the past decade.",
  "summary": "A decade ago, illegal cigarettes made up about 10 per cent of sales in Australia. Now it's 80 per cent, so how did we get here?",
  "key_points": [
    "Australia's tobacco tax has significantly reduced smoking rates.",
    "Illicit cigarettes now make up over half of all tobacco consumption.",
    "Politicians propose lowering tobacco excise to compete with illicit prices."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}