Today (November 26), the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), published a story titled “Why convenience stores along Fremantle cafe strip are the front line of WA’s illegal tobacco trade,” highlighting how Australia’s famous “cappuccino strip” has become a hub for illegal tobacco sales, with dozens of convenience stores quietly selling unlicensed cigarettes and loose tobacco.
The story says each store is a carbon copy of the others, with scant products on the shelves, with the illicit money-making products that keep the store open hidden in cabinets and under counters. Despite widespread concern, Western Australian authorities lack the legal power to immediately shut down offenders, allowing the trade to flourish in plain sight.
The Australian Council on Smoking and Health (ACOSH) has long called for updated laws, pointing to South Australia and Queensland, where tougher enforcement and heavy fines have successfully curtailed illicit sales. ACOSH chief Laura Hunter described the problem as an enforcement issue, not a tax one.
WA Health reports nearly one million cigarettes and 160 kg of loose tobacco seized in the past two years, but these figures pale in comparison to federal-level busts. Nationwide, tobacco excise revenue has fallen from A$16 billion ($10.4 billion) in 2019 to A$7.4 billion ($4.8 billion) this year, while major retailers like Coles and Woolworths have lost over half their tobacco revenue, leaving the market open to criminal operators.
Local leaders are exploring measures to curb the spread. Fremantle Mayor Ben Lawver noted that the city has 16 convenience-type shops in the CBD alone and is considering rezoning them as discretionary uses, giving the council some control over new openings.
In the meantime, the illicit tobacco trade continues to thrive, with limited state resources available to enforce existing laws, the story concluded.