Dear Shadow Minister,

Come on mate, much more flogging of this dead horse and I'm going to have to call the knackery to save its poor flayed hide.

Firstly a little blurb on Chain Volume Measures;

“This need for a measure of economic growth due only to changes in quantities has resulted in the development of two types of data series in which the effects of price changes are removed. The two series, constant price estimates and chain volume measures, indicate changes in quantity (or volume) between time periods by keeping the prices of goods and services constant. Chain volume measures are considered to more accurately reflect volume changes over time and in 1998 replaced constant price estimates as the official Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) measure of volume change.”
Australian Bureau of Statistics

If you download the national Accounts at the link I posted earlier you will find under column U the following; “Cigarettes and tobacco: Chain volume measures - Percentage changes”.

There you will find the changes in volume of tobacco sold in Australia in every quarter from 1959 until now.

You will also note a 2.7% fall for the most recent period the March 2014 Quarter, which was the largest volume drop in 30 years.

You may also note the careful wording in the quotes you supplied from the article; the first said “shows that tobacco sales volumes increased” and the second was phrased “slide in tobacco sales over the previous four years”. Notice the missing word in the second quote? Volume.

I have to know why on so many things are you a skeptical old coot but on this you are swallowing their hook, line and sinker as fast as your poor old larynx can go? The tobacco industry is a scurrilous, devious, mendacious bunch of bastards and your hatred of the Labour Party can not be that pervasive that you find it imperative that you do their dirty work for them. Time to drop this baby.

The fag policy must be working. One of the fag companies is trying a new trick;

Tobacco companies are reportedly importing cheap cigarettes into Australia in a bid to fight tough anti-smoking laws.

The government tried to reduce smoking rates in the country after hiking up taxes on cigarettes last year.

But British American Tobacco says the move has increased the demand for 'cut-price smokes'.

The company has begun selling Rothmans tobacco products, which it claims are the cheapest on the market this week.

Anti-smoking campaigners are now calling for a minimum price for cigarettes.

from skynews

Regulating any legal things use by taxation is discrimination aimed at the less affluent members of society and is therefor immoral.

If tobacco is the great killer that it is said to be then it is the bounden duty of Government to ban it, with due consideration for existing addicts.

I think liberal shills claiming plain packaging has increased smoking is a complete crockabaloney; however labor shills claiming plain packaging has reduced smoking are as full of of it as you can get.

How many of you have noticed the uptake in e-cigarettes(Electronic Cigarettes)? Yes, even the tobacco companies are worried!

E-Cigarettes have the potential to destroy the jobs of parasites from cancer council bludgers, to politicians, to tobacco industry workers, to big pharma' employees. Expect a wave of propaganda from all these groups in the near future. It would seem those addicted to nicotine are in for a rough ride, which is a shame, as nicotine itself is no more a problem than caffeine!

http://blog.casaa.org/2013/08/new-study-confirms-that-chemicals-in.html
http://www.spiked-online.com/newsite/article/Five-myths-about-e-cigs/14980
http://onvaping.com/the-ultimate-list-of-studies-on-e-cigarettes-and-their-safety/

One has to wonder why governments want to ban them? A loss of revenue perhaps?

http://www.cancer.org.au/news/blog/prevention/extreme-caution-needed-on-electronic-cigarettes.html
http://www.rationaloptimist.com/blog/e-cigarettes-are-making-tobacco-obsolete,-so-why-ban-them.aspx

So for all you nicotine addicts out there, grab an e-cig and enjoy your addiction without the problems associated with burning tobacco, and tell the nannies to GFT!

Njoh>> So I'll not be hard on him anymore.<<

Who cares njoh if your "hard" Njoh.....I don't believe OUG gives a toss about your perspective....

Sono, I think he has what may be some relatively serious mental issues, so I'll leave him alone. These issues are not overtly obvious in most of his posts, but a day or two ago I read some of his past posts and I could recognise certain things due to my past medical training. I won't attack the vulnerable. All's cool.