KEY POINTS:
The Ministry of Health is investigating the rebates tobacco companies pay retailers to stock their products.
The ministry told the Herald yesterday it would investigate "the issue of tobacco companies providing incentives to retailers to sell and display tobacco".
At Wednesday's meeting of Parliament's health select committee, the Association of Convenience Stores told MPs retailers received "standard trade rebates" from tobacco companies.
The ministry said: "Section 28 (2) of the Smoke-free Environments Act (1990) bans any gift or cash rebate as an inducement or reward to any retailer for the purchase, sale, advertising or placement of tobacco products."
The association's statement to MPs was confirmed by committee chairwoman Sue Kedgley, the Cancer Society's Action on Smoking and Health (Ash), and the association's executive director, David Killeen.
But association chairman Bryce Taylor said the society and Ash had taken the presentation out of context.
And in an apparent contradiction of the ministry's view, Mr Killeen said: "The act does allow normal trade rebates. We are not talking about incentives to put [tobacco products] in particular positions."
He said the rebates tobacco companies paid to retailers were the same as those paid by confectionerysuppliers.
"If you agree to sell so many brands of their product, they give you certain rebates ... The rebate is associated with the decision to purchase a particular brand. It's got nothing to do with display."
He acknowledged that tobacco advertising was not permitted, but said displays were not advertisements.
The committee was hearing submissions on a petition calling for retail tobacco displays to be banned.
The ministry, separately, is considering proposals to ban the displays, add further restrictions short of a ban, or simply enhance education and enforcement of the current law.
Mr Killeen said changes to put tobacco out of customers' sight would cost $6000 to $8000 at each store and could frustrate shoppers unable to find the brand they wanted quickly.
THE ASSOCIATION
* The Association of Convenience Stores represents more than 765 businesses.
* Its members are mostly convenience stores associated with petrol companies.
* A number of product suppliers are also "premier" members, including Imperial Tobacco, British American Tobacco, Philip Morris and Cadbury.
DISPLAYS ENCOURAGE TEEN SMOKERS
Teens who regularly visit shops where packets of cigarettes are displayed for all to see are at increased risk of taking up smoking, a new study shows.
"This is evidence that these displays are associated with smoking," said one of the researchers, Dr Janine Paynter, of the Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) anti-tobacco group.
Retailers are permitted to have point-of-sale displays of 100 packets of cigarettes and 40 cartons, but generally not next to confectionery or other products marketed mainly to children.
The study, presented to the Public Health Association conference in Waitangi yesterday, is drawn from a wider Ash smoking survey of 29,000 Year 10 students. It looked at their visits to stores with tobacco displays and their risk of taking up smoking.
Comparing students who visited stores daily with those who visited less than weekly, the study found that the likelihood of experimenting with smoking was almost tripled. Visiting twice or three times a week doubled the likelihood of trying smoking.
The 2007 Ash survey found that 12.8 per cent smoked at least monthly and 7.3 per cent were daily smokers.
