Right to Terminate Retail Shop Leases for Premises Under Tobacco Closure Orders
Tobacco Legislation (Closure Orders) Amendment Bill 2025
Legislative Assembly
Legislative Council
Assent
Introduced by: The Hon Courtney Houssos MLC (ALP); The Hon Ryan Park MP (ALP)
Links to official parliament websites
Effects of this bill
If this bill passes, it means that:
The Debate
What different members said when this bill was debated:
Rod Roberts IND
“I make a short contribution to debate on the Tobacco Legislation (Closure Orders) Amendment Bill 2025. I support the bill, however—here we go again—I feel the bill does not go far enough to halt the scourge of the criminal trading of illicit tobacco. Every other week our newsfeeds are filled with images of burning tobacco stores.”
“On behalf of the Legalise Cannabis Party, I oppose the Tobacco Legislation (Closure Orders) Amendment Bill 2025. I put on record that it is just another failure of prohibition. Organised crime is doing this because the tobacco excise is so high. There is so much profit and so much demand for tobacco that there is an incentive. The Hon.”
John Ruddick LIBT
“The Libertarian Party opposes the Tobacco Legislation (Closure Orders) Amendment Bill 2025. One of the worst aspects of big government is that when our big State overlords make a bad law which so obviously has more bad than good consequences, they double down. Even when a policy failure is staring them in the face, they persist. Why? It is ego—pathetic ego. They cannot admit an error.”
Stephen Lawrence ALP
“I am pleased to support the Tobacco Legislation (Closure Orders) Amendment Bill 2025. Illicit tobacco is a significant problem in this State and across our country. It has moved from being a public health issue to being an industry that fuels illegal activity and organised crime.”
Emily Suvaal ALP
“I thank the Hon. Natalie Ward, Ms Cate Faehrmann, the Hon. Rod Roberts, the Hon. Jeremy Buckingham, the Hon. John Ruddick, as always, for his erudite contributions and the Hon. Stephen Lawrence. Illicit tobacco is cheap, widely available and rarely sold with the health warning and plain-packaging requirements that would apply to legal tobacco products.”
News articles and press releases
Tobacco Legislation (Closure Orders) Amendment Bill 2025
Mr RYAN PARK, Minister for Health — 2025-08-06
In relation to closure orders, the bill amends the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2008 to introduce a new part 6A, which will establish a regime to enable the closure of premises where illicit tobacco or vaping goods have been or are likely to be sold at the premises, or where tobacco and non‑tobacco smoking products have been or are likely to be sold from unlicensed premises. To be clear, this means the complete closure of the premises, not just a prohibition on selling tobacco at the premises. Under new section 50H, it will be an offence for a person to enter premises that have been closed by a closure order.