Quit has no buts if cigarettes hit $20

(AAP) The Rudd government says it's committed to reducing smoking rates but has refused to confirm reports it's set to almost double cigarette taxes.

Health Minister Nicola Roxon was presented with the final report of Labor's
Preventative Health Taskforce on Tuesday - which suggests how best to halve smoking
rates by 2020.
It's yet to be released publicly, but Fairfax reported on Sunday that the tax hike
was locked in.
However, Ms Roxon says nothing's been finalised.
"The government received the taskforce's report this week and we will respond in due
course after carefully analysing the findings," Ms Roxon said in a statement.
"The taskforce has targeted tobacco as a priority, and its report will assist the
Australian government to reduce smoking rates."
In a discussion paper released publicly late last year, the health taskforce said
that in order to cut smoking rates to nine per cent by 2020, Canberra had to "ensure
that cigarettes become significantly more expensive".
It also argued for mandatory plain packaging and more extensive education campaigns
to "personalise the health risks of tobacco".
Fairfax says the government will increase the excise from 25 cents per cigarette to
43 cents - a 70 per cent increase.
The change would raise an estimated $1.97 billion a year.
Packets will be generic with graphic health warnings taking up 90 per cent of the
front and 100 per cent of the back.
Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull proposed increasing the tax by 12.5 per cent - or
three cents per cigarette - in his budget reply speech in May.
But on Sunday, opposition health spokesman Peter Dutton said if the reports were
true it was little more than a tax grab.
"I suspect if the Rudd government is talking about jacking taxes up it's nothing to
do with health outcomes, it's all to do with them trying to balance an
out-of-control budget," he told reporters.
Health group Quit says increasing the cost of smokes will save thousands of lives.
"Research consistently shows increases in the real price of cigarettes are crucial
to reducing smoking rates," Quit policy manager Kylie Lindorff said in a statement.
"Tobacco is the number one cause of preventable death in Australia, claiming 15,000
lives each year, so we cannot afford to take the foot off the accelerator."
Ms Lindorff said 60 per cent of smokers supported jacking up prices.
Action on Smoking and Health chief executive Anne Jones says a tax increase will
reduce consumption by four per cent for every 10 per cent increase in price.
It would also reduce the number of children taking up the habit.
"We're right behind the recommendations for doubling the price to $20 (a packet) and
using that revenue to then drive down smoking rates," she told Sky News.
Last week, Family First senator Steve Fielding said he was prepared to take on big
tobacco and push for plain cigarette packaging regardless of the federal
government's final position.
The Victorian senator vowed to introduce legislation to the upper house mandating
plain labelling when parliament resumes after the winter break.
At the time, Ms Roxon said the government looked forward to hearing from Senator
Fielding regarding his proposal.