Alan Morrison

Go out there and make them remember you.

Well, I've been telling the government about it since I was in the border force 10 years ago, that there's a huge problem and it's going to get bigger.

Unfortunately, those predictions have come true.

And in the last three years, it's turned from a large underground market to open air violence.

So we've got murders, drive-by shootings.

widespread extortion, hundreds of firebombings.

There were two just yesterday in Brisbane.

And there are illicit shops popping up everywhere, thousands of them.

In my suburb alone in Melbourne, there's one street that has 20 illicit tobacco shops on it.

So the revenue, as you say, has gone down for the government from $16.5 billion six years ago to $5 billion this year.

These gangs, organised criminal gangs, are just making billions, getting stronger.

and more dangerous.

Not only that, the smoking rates are going up because people have access to very cheap cigarettes, prices that they haven't seen since last century.

So,

In summary, the cigarette rate, the illicit cigarette rate is now about 80% of the market.

And for vapes, that's up over 95% of the market is illicit.

So basically, our tobacco policies failed on every level.

Well, the government's not doing anything about it because they are being advised by the health department.

And the health department have no expertise or experience in law enforcement.

And so this health issue has become a law enforcement issue.