tobacco

At this stage the matter is more a threat to take action than the real deal, but if Philip Morris does proceed with formal legal measures against the Australian Government, the business and political world will take a keen interest. It could be a precedent-setting case, and there is a potentially huge outcome at stake.

Recommendations from Parliament's Maori affairs select committee for a robust crackdown on smoking are out of touch with economic reality and will turn the nation into fertile ground for organised crime, says a retailer lobby.

An Auckland academic says smoking rates in New Zealand would plummet if tobacco products could not be displayed at shops.

Amid a barrage of Maori people calling for tough controls and the eventual banning of smoking, a tobacco company today asked for current sale display rules to remain the same.