Despite significant gains in reducing smoking in Victoria, the predatory practices of the tobacco and vaping industries are threatening to undo this progress and put Victorian lives at risk.
In the past four years, national vaping rates have almost tripled. Young people aged 18 to 24 are vaping at alarming rates, with almost one in two reporting having used them at least once in their lifetime, and more than one in five currently vaping. Evidence shows people who vape are five times as likely to take up smoking as those who have never vaped, providing another pathway to harmful nicotine addiction.
Thanks to ongoing support of people like you, 2024 was a big year for vaping and tobacco control. The year saw world-leading policies passed, the release of new research and new campaigns and initiatives making it easier for people to quit smoking or vaping.
January – We developed and launched 'Seeing through the Haze', a suite of free, evidence-based, curriculum-aligned vaping education resources for Victorian schools. These resources will support schools to prevent, and respond to, vaping by providing further opportunities to help students understand the dangers of vaping through day-to-day learning.
April - Cancer Council Victoria and Quit leadership presented as expert witnesses to a Parliamentary Inquiry into smoking and vaping in Victoria.
May – We released data from a national survey that found that 73 per cent of respondents vape at least once a week and 68 per cent who vape monthly said they planned to stop or reduce the amount they vape. The survey also found that an alarming 20 per cent of respondents aged 14 and over have tried a vape.
This data helped to support the rationale for national vaping reforms limiting access to vapes to help protect young people from nicotine addiction.
A new Quit campaign, ‘Quit with Pride’, launched to support queer communities to stop smoking following data revealed LGBTIQA+ Victorians are twice as likely to smoke. The campaign encouraged community members battling nicotine dependence to quit smoking and seek support from culturally sensitive services such as Quitline.
Thomas shared his quitting journey story in Quit with Pride.
June – Quit services, with the support of the Federal Government, expanded to include a new National Cessation Platform and the My QuitBuddy app to help people quit smoking and vaping. The digital platform, quit.org.au, will evolve over the next several years and ensure that Quit services continue to innovate using new technologies and tools to assist Australians as they continue to try to quit smoking or vaping.
July – We welcomed the implementation of new legislation to protect young people from an industry intent on manipulating a new generation into becoming addicted to nicotine. Under the new legislation, all vapes can only be sold in a pharmacy for the purpose of helping people to quit smoking or manage nicotine dependence. This also means people won’t be able to order vapes directly from overseas and flavours are now limited to mint, menthol or tobacco in an effort to reduce their appeal.
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The Con That Kills campaign.
October – We rolled out a reboot of ‘The Con That Kills’ campaign describing the many ways the tobacco industry manipulates its customers.
Our Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer released a new report showing a concerning prevalence of smoking and vaping across the Victorian community, showing highest smoking prevalence in Swan Hill and the highest vaping prevalence in the City of Yarra.
A new in-language campaign, ‘The Hanky’, was also launched in October to motivate quitting among Victorian multicultural communities with high smoking rates.
November – After decades of advocacy by Cancer Council Victoria and Quit, we welcomed new legislation to introduce a Victorian tobacco licensing scheme in 2025, to better regulate tobacco distribution and sales. This will bring us in line with every other Australian jurisdiction. You need a licence to sell alcohol, drive a car and even catch a fish. Now suppliers and sellers of tobacco products will be required to apply for a licence to sell tobacco products.
As the tobacco industry continues to innovate to get young customers addicted to nicotine, we must also innovate to protect Australians from the health harms of smoking and vaping. With you by our side, we stand ready to support all Australians who smoke or vape to quit.