Australian Health Minister Nicola Roxon in a speech before the UN General Assembly promised victory in her country’s battle for cigarette plain-packing and urged the rest of the world to join “the fight against big tobacco.”

“Big tobacco giants are fighting desperately through multi-million dollar advertising campaigns and threats of legal action,” to stop introduction of plain-packaging next year, she said in the text of her 19 Sept. New York address which was released today by the Health Ministry. “They know if Australia succeeds in being the first country to implement these laws, we won’t be the last.”
Australia plans to restrict cigarette packaging to a drab brown colour with graphic health warnings covering most of the packet.
She spoke to the UN plenary session on communicable diseases, a two-day meeting attended by more than 30 heads of state and government. A declaration issued 19 Sept. calls on national governments to set up plans by 2013 to reduce risk factors for non-communicable diseases. Among the proposals are higher prices and taxes on tobacco products to reduce consumption. (ci)