Excise tax on a pack of cigarettes rose 12.5 per cent from 1 Dec under the first of four annual tobacco-tax hikes expected to raise the average pack price to AUD 20 (EUR 13.40), the Daily Liberal reported.

The excise tax plan was announced in August to help balance the budget by raising an estimated AUD 5.3 billion over four years. Funds also would be used to deter young people from smoking and paying medical costs of smoke-related diseases, the government said in August. Subsequent 12.5 per cent increases are planned for 1 Sept in the next three years.
Cancer Council research cited by the Daily Liberal held nearly two-thirds of smokers would try to quit if the price of tobacco increased 15 per cent.