Illegal tobacco shops are getting a “free ride” after Queensland Health paused high-risk raids over safety concerns.
It is understood an email sent to Queensland Health staff said no high-risk inspections were to be conducted in August and September unless personnel were with police.
Health whistleblowers said it was “heartbreaking” because they were forced to walk past retail locations selling illicit tobacco and vapes to instead target the decent shops next door to keep their numbers up.
In July, 451 shops were raided compared with 308 in August. Closure orders were imposed on 28 shops in July and just 16 in August.
A woman who works in the tobacco industry but asked to remain anonymous said nothing was getting done as effectively as it should be.
“These guys are smarter than the average bear, they are smarter than our government. They are going to intimidate the health officers,” she said.
“That lets the illicit guys have free reign again. We cannot police our way out of this.
“It’s a real tight rope for the government. Police are tied up, there is not enough police on the ground to go into this.”
Queensland Health workers have told The Sunday Mail no definition of “high risk” had been provided, which meant they were only targeting very low-risk places.
A Queensland Health spokesman said tobacco and vape laws were still enforce by store raids across the state.
“During July and August, we conducted 769 store raids, which exceeded activity undertaken in most other jurisdictions and is more than three times the number of raids conducted during the same period two years ago,” the spokesman said.
“We continue to target businesses suspected of breaking our illicit tobacco laws, while also prioritising the safety of our frontline staff as we work closely with state and federal law enforcement agencies.”
A police spokeswoman said specialist investigators from Taskforce Masher monitored criminal activity linked to tobacco shops, including sales of illicit tobacco and vapes.
She said they “adapt policing strategies accordingly”.
“Investigations by Taskforce Masher continue to monitor organised crime groups and any links between arson, extortion and attempted arson attacks and related offending on tobacco stores,” she said.
“Police work closely with policing counterparts nationally and federally as well as other government agencies, including Queensland Health and Therapeutic Goods Administration, who are the lead agencies in respect to the sale of illicit tobacco and vapes in Queensland, including investigations targeting the sale of these products.”
Extracted in full from: https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/qld-illegal-tobacco-shops-getting-free-ride-as-health-raids-paused/news-story/6111bbf98d0f9f53c6608177d106c0eb
