Councillors vent frustration at legislation timeframe
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter
Waimakariri’s councillors have vented their frustration at the speed of implementing new smoking and vaping legislation.
Councillors agreed to make a submission on proposals for the new smoked tobacco regulatory regime at Tuesday’s (March 7) council meeting.
But expressed frustration at the timeframe for submissions, which prevented the council from consulting with the community.
Councils have until March 15 to submit on proposals for implementing the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment Act, which came into force in January.
The legislation is set to make sweeping changes, including reducing the number of retail stores selling tobacco from 6000 to 600 nationwide.
This would mean reducing from 30 to seven tobacco retailers in Waimakariri’s urban areas, with a handful of other retailers in ‘‘rural areas’’.
But the legislation did not restrict the number of outlets selling vape products.
Several councillors expressed concern about how this would impact on small businesses, already struggling in the present economic climate.
Deputy mayor Neville Atkinson expressed his dismay at a policy ‘‘picking six winners and losers’’.
He suggested the retailers able to sell cigarettes would reap the benefits, while others would struggle.
But he noted the long term impact of banning smoking in pubs had been positive.
‘‘When they stopped smoking in hotels they said they were all going to close, but how many hotels have we got now?’’
Councillor Tim Fulton said councillors ‘‘owe it to our kids’’ to make a submission.
He suggested a ‘‘sinking lid policy’’ on tobacco retailers, similar to reducing gaming machines, would be fairer than a mandatory reduction in retailers.
Councillor Philip Redmond said it was ‘‘a waste of time’’ reducing the number of tobacco retailers.
‘‘You either have it or you don’t.
‘‘It is like drink driving, it has taken a long time for people to finally get the message.’’
Councillor Niki Mealings said smokefree legislation had been in the pipeline for decades.
‘‘If your business is dependent on selling cigarettes to survive, then you need to relook at your business model because you’ve had 23 years to prepare for this.’’
But she was concerned about the lack of regulation around vaping and particularly the targeting of young people who had no history of smoking tobacco.
‘‘Social service agencies are asking what are councils doing about vape shops and the answer is nothing because we don’t have the tools, so we need to do something about it.’’
She noted the legislation did have clauses to make vape products less attractive.
Redmond said vaping was the ‘‘elephant in the room’’, as it needed to be restricted and regulated.
‘‘The government needs to protect our youth because it has already become trendy.’’
Atkinson said while the government had made it illegal to sell vape to under-18s, ‘‘who is enforcing it?’’
■ Public interest journalism funded through New Zealand on Air.
Poll: Should drivers retake the theory test every 10 years?
Drivers get where they need to go, but sometimes it seems that we are all abiding by different road rules (for example, the varying ways drivers indicate around a roundabout).
Do you think drivers should be required to take a quick driving theory test every 10 years?
Vote in the poll and share any road rules that you've seen bent! 😱
-
48.1% Yes
-
50% No
-
1.9% Other - I'll share below
Here's Thursday's thinker!
I am lighter than air, but a hundred people cannot lift me. What am I?
Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.
Want to stop seeing riddles in your newsfeed?
Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
Hero
“I was born and raised in war. To be honest, those are not good memories.
I really like Iran, and I really miss it, but I couldn’t be myself there. Even though my family didn’t like my decision, I left Iran. I promised myself that I would do whatever I can for all communities, especially for the kids, so they do not have the same experience I had.
I studied software engineering in Iran and left in 2006. I went to Malaysia and stayed in Kuala Lumpur for seven years. I was admitted to Lincoln University to do my PhD here, but unfortunately, I couldn’t afford the expenses. I requested a scholarship, but they told me I had to be there for six months first. So, I stayed in Malaysia and did my PhD in network security. In December 2013, I came to New Zealand with a work visa.
It took me a while to connect with the Iranian community here. I volunteered with the Multicultural Council, SPCA, and community patrol, and I established the Christchurch Iranian Society in 2017. Before that, I started working on Radio Toranj, the only Farsi-language radio show in New Zealand.
One of the reasons I started organizing cultural events was to showcase Iranian culture. I wanted to show people that we have delicious food, colorful dresses, traditional customs, and our own instruments. My hope was to show people that we are not what you see in the media.
I am working to involve all the communities that celebrate Nowruz, the Persian New Year, in the Nowruz festival in March 2025. We want to share this celebration not only with our community but with the public as well. It’s better when it’s shared.
I remember the first time someone from Dunedin called me and asked, Hero, can you help? Something happened, and they keep declining Iranian visa applications. When I heard that, I felt insulted. We are still human, so how can they do that?
Through this journey, I’ve learned a lot. Every single day, people with different cases call me, and I try to share my knowledge and guide them as much as I can.
I have received several awards, including the Christchurch Civic Award and an Award of Recognition for my contributions to the community during the pandemic. In 2021, I established Canterbury Kia Ora Academy, a charitable trust. Through this charity, I can help other communities as well, not just the Iranian community.”
- Hero
View more stories, or nominate someone: @humansofchch
www.humansofchch.org......
Loading…
