Black Market Tobacco Grey In Australia
Australia is full of progressive laws that just don’t get enforced. I call us the land of toothless tigers and unlike the Tasmanian tiger these are not rare or extinct. Indeed, they are prolific. Black market tobacco grey in Australia because it is so readily available. Tobacconists stock black market tobacco openly in defiance of the laws of the land. Why is this so? Is it a bit like the long held laisse faire attitude of male police officers toward domestic violence in this country? Smokers don’t like paying so much for their ciggies and most cops in Australia are blokes. They just don’t see the problem.
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What Black Market Tobacco Downunder?
Governments at federal and state level are not assiduously enforcing the laws of the land when it comes to cracking down on black market tobacco. Why? Could it be that they are frightened over voter backlash? Don’t poke the bear in case it gets angry and tells all its friends not to vote for you. Rather, we will have a high falutin tax law imposed upon cigarettes to keep the progressives happy but we won’t be too worried about enforcing it. Best of both worlds in the laid back Aussie political tradition. Oh, That $6.9 Billion Black Market Tobacco Only thing is, there is now a $7 billion black market tobacco war which has exploded out upon the streets of our cities. Organised crime gangs have grown rich and powerful on the back of our slovenly governing. They are burning down tobacco shops like it is Beirut back in the bad old days. Oh, and the federal budget is short a few billion bob as well on the back of their popularity. Perhaps, our mealy mouthed, gutless approach has not quite been the best of both worlds. Of course, Dutton and his mob under Morrison, Turnbull and Abbott were complicit in this softly, softly approach for their decade in power. Funny how Peter Dutton, the strongman, only ever threatens soft targets and weak scapegoats. He is big on busting crime figures long after the horse has bolted. “A huge increase in the sale of black market cigarettes has wiped $6.9 billion off the federal budget. Trade of illegal tobacco has grown rapidly as the cost of legal cigarettes has climbed. “ - (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-25/illegal-tobacco-trade-costing-budget-billions/105095236)
Photo by Ellie Burgin on Pexels.com Black market tobacco grey in Australia due to the weak stance of multiple governments over many years. It is in line with the lily livered politicians we have to think of as our leaders, who duck and weave whenever possible to avoid actually taking a stance. These talking heads who spend 90% of their time shining their domes and insincerely smiling at cameras. Smoking ciggies kills people, along with drinking too much booze day in day out. Despite the plethora of evidence in this regard, we still pander to bad habits and keep folk in their comfort zones. Progressive policies are announced and then quietly undermined through inaction and toothless tigers taking the trash out. How about actually prosecuting these black market operators and enforcing the laws of the land you piss weak bastards! Robert Sudha Hamilton is the author of America Matters: Pre-apocalyptic Posts & Essays in the Shadow of Trump. ©WordsForWeb Read the full article
