Key facts
- Counterfeit cigarettes with Australian-style packaging and health warnings are being produced at an industrial scale in Southeast Asia.
Criminal syndicates are producing sophisticated counterfeit cigarettes with Australian-style packaging and health warnings in Southeast Asia. Customs Minister Julian Hill urged parliament to pass new laws to combat the increasingly hard-to-detect illegal tobacco trade, with a bill set for Senate debate.
The proliferation of sophisticated counterfeit tobacco products undermines public health efforts and deprives governments of tax revenue. The increasing difficulty in detection highlights the need for enhanced law enforcement capabilities to combat organized crime's involvement in the illicit trade.
Illegal tobacco products are becoming increasingly sophisticated and difficult to detect, with counterfeit cigarettes now featuring Australian-style packaging and health warnings. Intelligence indicates that criminal syndicates, primarily based in Cambodia, are producing these fakes at an industrial scale in Southeast Asian warehouses. Customs Minister Julian Hill has called for urgent parliamentary passage of new laws to equip authorities with stronger powers to combat the illicit trade. A bill is expected to be debated in the Senate on Thursday, aiming to disrupt illegal tobacco supply chains and choke off criminal profits. Several states and territories are intensifying enforcement, with NSW police recently closing 10 retailers and health inspectors seizing hundreds of thousands of illegal cigarettes and vapes.
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