About the campaign
The National Tobacco Campaign is one of Health's longest running public health campaigns. It launched in June 1997 and aims to reduce smoking rates in Australia. Within 5 years adult smoking had reduced by 3.7%.
Why it is important
Tobacco use:
- is the leading cause of preventable death and disability in Australia
- killed an estimated 21,000 Australians in 2015
- leads to health, social, financial and economic costs in the community
Smoking while pregnant increases both the risk of complications during pregnancy and harm to the baby. And passive smoking – breathing in second-hand smoke – exposes non-smokers to serious health risks.
Helping people to quit smoking, or – even better – to never start, means:
- better health for Australians
- reduced financial cost to our health system
Goals
The campaign aims to:
- discourage people from smoking
- help people to stop smoking
- have strong tobacco control policies
- change community attitudes towards smoking
Meeting our goals
The campaign targets audiences in different ways, such as:
- TV ads
- social media materials
- digital apps
- resources in different languages
- partnerships with mental health organisations
- DVDs and resource kits for prisons
- programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and pregnant women
What we are currently doing
Don't make smokes your story – an anti-smoking campaign focusing on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It features an Aboriginal man (Ted) talking about his experiences of smoking and the benefits of quitting.
Tackling Indigenous Smoking – a targeted program to reduce smoking among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Information about the history of the National Tobacco Campaign is available from the National Library of Australia's government web archive.
Who we work with
We work with other organisations including:
- SANE Australia – to create resources that help people with mental illness quit smoking
- the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco
Learn more
Resources
National Tobacco Strategy 2012–2018
