Make tobacco illegal in Australia!

The three diseases that cause most deaths in Australia are heart disease, stroke and lung cancer, with tobacco smoking being a major cause for all three of these killers.

It is the largest single preventable cause of death and disease in Australia, as recorded by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and the world, as said by the World Health Organisation. If tobacco smoking causes so much harm, why should it be “allowed” to kill people in the way that it does?

The adverse effects on health are not only suffered by smokers, but also by non-smokers who still breathe in tobacco smoke. Tobacco can even cause non-smokers to be more at risk of getting diseases such as lung cancer and others linked to smoking. Children are even more sensitive to the tobacco smoke, which can hinder lung development and cause respiratory problems and infections, as well as other illnesses.

I fully support the current initiatives to protect children from the effects of smoking, but why stop there? Isn’t this akin to stopping slavery of children, yet allowing adults to remain enslaved? I suggest that the sale, production and importation of tobacco are made illegal in Australia and eventually, possession as well. This would greatly reduce the number of smokers in our country, as there are many people currently addicted to tobacco that wouldn’t be prepared to keep smoking through illegal means.