Australia's flourishing tobacco black market has been branded a 'global laughing stock' as new data reveals the country leads dozens of others in illegal tobacco consumption. Former Australian Federal Police detective Rohan Pike labelled the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) figures 'outrageous'.
Alarming Statistics
The ABS data, released this week, shows national nicotine consumption increased by almost 40 per cent between 2017 and 2025. Illicit products accounted for 80 per cent of total tobacco consumption in 2025, a massive jump from just 12 per cent in 2017. This 80 per cent market share far exceeds comparable data from European nations, Canada, and New Zealand.
Policy Failure
'Australia had gone from world leading to the global laughing stock of tobacco control,' Mr Pike told Sky News.com.au. 'We must remember who caused this total failure of policy. It is the same public health advocates that the government go to to seek the solution. It's like asking the arsonist how to put out the fire. They need to apologise and move aside so we can blow up our policy and start again.'
He added that Australia's tobacco policies are 'based on a fallacy in that health authorities think they can stop everyone from smoking and consuming any nicotine product. They can't. Prohibition never works.'
International Comparisons
A KPMG report commissioned by Philip Morris Products SA found illicit tobacco consumption accounted for approximately 11.1 per cent of total consumption across 38 European markets in 2025. The study covered 27 European Union member states and 11 other countries including the United Kingdom and Norway. Illegal tobacco consumption represented at least 20 per cent of total consumption in just seven of those nations, with France having the highest rate at 41 per cent.
Another KPMG study of Canada and 10 Latin American countries found contraband and counterfeit products represented 31.9 per cent of total cigarette consumption in 2025, a decrease of 0.6 percentage points from 2024. In Canada alone, the share was 38.3 per cent last year.
Meanwhile, an FTI Consulting report found 27.2 per cent of total tobacco consumed in New Zealand in 2024 were illegal products, far below Australia's 80 per cent.
