After 23 years of smoking, including a period of up to 70 a day, Whangarei's Mahesh Prasad reckons the Budget's huge tax hikes for tobacco could be the impetus to finally kick the habit in the butt.
The hikes have been welcomed by Mr Prasad and health workers, while
a primary health leader is praising the Budget's extension of government-subsidised home insulation scheme, which he says is needed for Northland.
Smokers will pay at least $5 more for a packet of 20 cigarettes by 2016 after the Government announced a series of tax increases on tobacco in yesterday's Budget.
Tobacco excise taxes would rise by 10 per cent a year in each of the next four years. Once inflation increases were included, the price of the average packet of 20 cigarettes would climb dramatically from around $15 today to more than $20 by 2016.
The price of an average packet of loose tobacco would climb to around $40 over the next four years. The hikes followed a 40 per cent increase in tobacco excises since April 2010. The first of the new tax hikes would take place on January 1.
Mr Prasad, a builder, said when he started smoking in Fiji tobacco cost only $2 a pack and at one time he was smoking 70 rollies a day.
He's down to about 10 a day now and while he has stopped for periods over the years, feels it will be easy to quit now.
"That [yesterday's tax hike] is a big increase. It will be another weapon to help us to quit smoking, which has got to be good for all our [smokers'] health and should be good for everybody," Mr Prasad said.
"Since I've cut back a lot I've really noticed the differences to my health and sense of smell. I can breath better and now smell everything, whereas before I could only smell smoke."
The series of hikes was welcomed by Northland District Health Board smokefree worker Bridget Rowse, who said every time tobacco prices increased more people sought help to quit.
Tobacco is related to a quarter of all deaths in Northland and 47 per cent of all Maori deaths in the region.
Meanwhile, Manaia PHO boss Chris Farrelly said the decision to extend the Warm Up New Zealand programme by a year to July 2014 was good news for Northland.
"We run a similar programme - Healthy Homes Te Tai Tokerau - and over the past four years we've insulated more than 4000 of the poorest homes in Northland that badly needed it.
"We funded it by raising money locally and the government matched it dollar for dollar and this announcement will ensure continued funding for it."
Mr Farrelly said the were at least another 12,000 poor Northland homes that needed better insulation.
"There are a lot of poor houses in Northland."