Tobacco control campaigners say they are thrilled with the Government's decision to press on with plain packaging for tobacco.
Prime Minister John Key said on Monday that he expected the Maori Party-devised plain-packaging regime to advance "sooner rather than later" after new advice from officials said the prospects of a legal challenge were diminishing.
National Maori Tobacco Control manager Zoe Hawke applauded the move, saying plain packs had already led to a fall in tobacco consumption in Australia.
Various studies showed that plain packets were "significantly less attractive" to young adults, she said. Packets with standardised colours and fonts also led to less smoking around others, going without cigarettes, or increased thinking about quitting.
Ash director Stephanie Erick said that Australia's plain-packaging policy had provided "huge benefits", including a fall in smoking rates and a rise in people calling quit-lines.