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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-12-02 Daily Xml
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TOBACCO CONTROL

The Hon. L. STEVENS (Little Para) (15:43): Over the last month, leading up to retiring from this place, I have been asked by a number of people which things I am most proud of and which I have had a part in achieving. I have been giving this some thought, and one thing is that I am now able to walk into Grand Central—the home of the Doggies—in Elizabeth and breathe easily. I recall very clearly—and you were involved, of course, Madam Deputy Speaker—the process leading up to the 2004 legislation that I introduced banning smoking in all workplaces, including pubs and clubs—no exceptions and no exemptions.

At the time not only was it a public health issue but also it was an immediate and urgent occupational health issue. The legislation also introduced a wide range of measures to protect children from tobacco advertising and other inducements to take up smoking. At that time the legislation put our state at the forefront of tobacco control in Australia. In 2006, minister Gago in another place added further measures, which included a ban on flavoured cigarettes and a ban on smoking in cars with children under 16 present.

When I read a recent news release from the current minister for substance abuse, I was enormously pleased because the Hon. Jane Lomax-Smith announced that, according to the findings of the Australian Secondary Students Alcohol and Drugs Survey, South Australia has recorded its lowest rate of smoking amongst school students since 1984.

The survey showed a significant drop in the smoking rates of secondary school students aged 16 and 17 years, with only 8 per cent reported as current smokers in 2008, compared with 15 per cent in 2005. It also showed that three-quarters of students aged 12 to 17 reported that they had never smoked and that 5 per cent of students reported smoking in the past week in 2008, compared with 7 per cent in 2005.

At the end of her press release, the minister included a table that showed that smoking rates among young people from 1984 to 2008: in 1984, it was 24.3 per cent; in 2002, it was 13.8 per cent; in 2005, it was 7.4 per cent; and, in 2008, it was 4.9 per cent.

So, I congratulate all of us, particularly the Rann government, for making this a priority and for taking action in legislation to put in place laws that have led to this decrease in the take-up of smoking by young people. In fact, it is part of the Rann government's Strategic Plan to make these positive changes.

When I received the news release, I made some further inquiries from the minister's department to get further background on the measures it thought had directly contributed. I was told that the increase in activity over recent years—through the smoke-free legislation, the Quitline, the focus on the parents of young people to get them to stop smoking and the point-of-sale changes—combined together has been the reason for the decrease, so I congratulate all those concerned.

A key finding was also that overall student knowledge of tobacco related adverse health effects was higher in 2008 and that almost two-thirds of students reported receiving at least one lesson about smoking in the year prior to the survey, so I congratulate the education sector on the work it does in relation to smoking cessation. However, there is still work to do with some groups, such as indigenous people, people with a mental health issue and people with a drug issue, and it is something we still need to address.

Time expired.

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