63915 (2024). Hon Dr Ayesha Verrall to the Associate Minister of Health

63915 (2024). Hon Dr Ayesha Verrall to the Associate Minister of Health: Does the $216m provision for the excise tax cut on heated tobacco products reflect an assumption that HTPs will be more widely consumed than they are at present, if so, on what basis did she make that assumption?

Hon Casey Costello: My assumption was that creating a price differential between cigarettes and HTP's could present a less harmful option to addicted smokers for whom vaping and other nicotine replacement therapies had not worked as smoking cessation tools. Assumptions about the magnitude of consumption were made by the Treasury and Ministry of Health.