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Speaker 1: Well, I've had a bit of time now to look

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Speaker 1: at the so called independent advice released by Casey Costello

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Speaker 1: on the efficacy of heated to tobacco products, which she

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Speaker 1: has so curiously and steadfastly supported. Now, to remind you,

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Speaker 1: there is one company that has been providing these heated

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Speaker 1: tobacco products in New Zealand. That company is Philip Morris. Right,

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Speaker 1: the company's external relations manager is the former Chief of

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Speaker 1: Staff for New Zealand. First, and while Casey Costello says

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Speaker 1: she has no links to the tobacco industry and that

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Speaker 1: the tobacco industry has nothing to do with the policies

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Speaker 1: she supports, she insists the heated tobacco products have quote

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Speaker 1: a similar risk profile to vapes, and so she wanted

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Speaker 1: to see the X size tax on these products halved. Well,

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Speaker 1: what did the official advice say? R and Z got

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Speaker 1: their hand on the documents, And first of all, the

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Speaker 1: tax side, Philip Morris has had a monopoly on the market,

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Speaker 1: and so it was hardly surprising that Treasury pointed out

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Speaker 1: there was actually nothing that would make Philip Morris pass

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Speaker 1: on an excised tax cut to consume its the health side, well,

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Speaker 1: the Ministry of Health could find quote no compelling evidence

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Speaker 1: of the devices helping to stop smoking. So then, in

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Speaker 1: order to justify such a move harving the tax, you

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Speaker 1: would think Casey Costello would have to have some really

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Speaker 1: compelling evidence that heated tobacco products were really effective as

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Speaker 1: a smoking cessation tool for people who weren't simply vaping instead,

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Speaker 1: Except she didn't. Her evidence included an opinion piece, an

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Speaker 1: article which says heated tobacco products might help smokers quit

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Speaker 1: but could also attract nonsmokers, an outdated study that doesn't

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Speaker 1: mention heated tobacco products, a study of snooze which isn't

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Speaker 1: a heated tobacco product, and an article talking about Japan

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Speaker 1: which doesn't have vaping and relied on data from Philip

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Speaker 1: Morris International and the Tobacco Institute of Japan, one of

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Speaker 1: whose founding members was you guessed it, Philip Morris International.

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Speaker 1: I mean, come on, come on, I cannot recall a

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Speaker 1: time when such a poor standard of evidence has been

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Speaker 1: cited by a minister advocating for this kind of legislative change.

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Speaker 1: This isn't some rando backbenchure. This is a cabinet minister.

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Speaker 1: We all deserve better For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive,

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Speaker 1: Listen live to News Talk sai'd Be from four pm weekdays,

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Speaker 1: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio