Tobacco Control Strategy

Mr PICTON (Kaurna) (14:51): My question is to the Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse. How has the Tobacco Control Strategy affected smoking rates in South Australia?

The Hon. L.A. VLAHOS (Taylor—Minister for Disabilities, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse) (14:51): I thank the member for Kaurna for his interest in this area. He has a long-term interest and has advocated strongly to ensure that we minimise the uptake and harms of tobacco use in this space for many years. Members in this place may recall that I recently launched the latest iteration of the SA Tobacco Control Strategy 2017-2020. This strategy has a key target to reduce adult smoking rates to 8 per cent by 2020. The target comes from recent data that shows there is positive progress being made in our tobacco control policies.

Our latest strategy saw declines of smoking rates in key areas, including smoking rates among South Australians, declining from 20.5 per cent in 2010 to 15.7 per cent in 2015. Smoking rates have also declined among young people, which is an important area. In the ages of 15 to 29, it has gone from 22.9 per cent in 2010 to 16.9 per cent in 2015. Smoking rates amongst people with mental illness have also declined, from 34.5 per cent in 2010 to 26 per cent in 2015.

These impressive results are the result of changes being implemented through evidence-driven policies and targeted campaigns. These include the removal of all tobacco products displayed from retail outlets; increasing smoke-free outdoor areas, such as covered transport stops and children's playgrounds; and delivering culturally appropriate smoking cessation campaigns and services for Aboriginal people.

I would like to acknowledge the work of all the people working in this space and in this sector, which is an incredibly hard area to work in, such as SA Health, Drug and Alcohol Services South Australia, NGO workers, the Cancer Council, the Heart Foundation, the AMA, and the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute. A diverse range of stakeholders in our community are working very hard to ensure that we continue our good work in reducing tobacco use and tobacco harm in our state.

While good progress has been made, we must continue our positive forward momentum. Premier Weatherill and the state Labor government believe in minimising the harms of tobacco use in our community.

The SPEAKER: The minister won't refer to any member by his or her surname.

The Hon. L.A. VLAHOS: Thank you, Mr Speaker. The latest data shows our strategies have been working, and I look forward to building upon this progress and achieving our strategies.