Albanese government to raise tobacco tax by 5% a year to make smoking ‘more unattractive’

Health minister Mark Butler said the tobacco tax changes would raise an additional $3.3bn over the coming four years. Photograph: Lisi Niesner/Reuters

The Albanese government will increase the tax on tobacco by 5% per year over the next three years, the health minister has revealed, alongside a suite of measures to crack down on vaping.

But he said Australia has no plans to follow the path of New Zealand by outlawing tobacco smoking for the next generation.