Peters slams smokefree military plan
"You know this is the kind of government that would send somebody to die and won't give him a chance, or her chance, to have a smoke before that happens.'' Winston Peters, NZ First leader
Not everyone agrees with a New Zealand Defence Force move to stub out smoking in the military by 2020.
NZ First leader Winston Peters, asked for his thoughts on the move, rounded on Government ’’hypocrisy’’, political correctness, and the media in one swoop.
To achieve the goal, the military plans to ban the sale of cigarettes and tobacco at army bases, or camps, and make military housing smokefree.
The Defence Force will be the first armed force in the world to go smokefree.
The move was announced at an event at Parliament with smokefree charity ASH.
Peters, speaking to media, said it was unfair on troops, who at times were sent into battle and risked their lives. He also said the move smacked of Government hypocrisy..
‘‘It has a forecast for tobacco tax to go up, not down, even though they have a target of smokefree by 2025. That’s sort of screaming hypocrisy, isn’t it?
‘‘I am not taking my mind off the hypocrisy here. You’ve got a Government that says it’s anticigarette smoking, yet it forecasts through to increase its collection of taxation on cigarettes and tobacco in the next three years so, sure, they don’t believe their own words.
‘‘You know this is the kind of government that would send somebody to die and won’t give him a chance, or her chance, to have a smoke before that happens.
‘‘That’s how out of kilter and PC you are [the media] and they are.’’
Commander Karen Ward said it was a benchmark for other armed forces.
‘‘By undertaking a conscious drive to create a smokefree force, the NZDF will also be setting a benchmark for other defence forces by becoming the first military to become smokefree.’’
Emeritus Professor and ASH chair Robert Beaglehole said he hoped the move would be an example to other government agencies aiming for the 2025 target for a smokefree New Zealand.
‘‘This is a huge milestone, the New Zealand Defence Force is one of the largest employers in New Zealand with over 14,000 personnel, and the biggest government department to go smokefree.’’
However, Beaglehole said there was still no definitive plan for achieving the 2025 goal and ASH was calling for a ‘‘strong, evidencebased roadmap to get us to Smokefree 2025’’.