MEDIA STATEMENT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday 25 May 2026, 5:00 PM
2 minutes to Read
Te Tiratū Iwi Māori Partnership Board is calling for urgent regulatory and public health action to curb the rising uptake of vaping products across the Waikato rohe, warning that current market practices are driving nicotine addiction among rangatahi Māori and undermining whānau wellbeing.
Released ahead of World Smokefree Day on 31 May 2026, Te Tiratū has worked with the Otago University Faculty of Medicine on a Vaping Position Statement.
Developed with expert technical advisor Associate Professor Andrew Waa it calls for vaping products to be restricted to regulated therapeutic settings only to protect rangatahi Māori from nicotine addiction.
Te Tiratū represents approximately 121,300 Māori across the Waikato rohe, a population that is both young and significantly rural, with 48% under the age of 25.
National data shows concerning trends among rangatahi Māori, with 16.5% of Māori Year 10 students vaping daily, 23.9% vaping regularly, and 53.2% having tried vaping, while Māori girls report the highest regular vaping rate at 28.7%.
Tumu Whakarae of Te Tiratū IMPB, Brandi Hudson says the scale of harm being seen across the rohe requires urgent action and number of rangatahi vaping reinforces the need for stronger prevention-focused regulation.
“Te Tiratū is extremely concerned about the widespread uptake of vaping products and the predatory marketing strategies used to lure our whānau into nicotine addiction. To uphold our vision “Kia tupu, kia hua, kia puāwai”, we must protect our people especially rangatahi from exploitation by highly addictive products,” she said.
“Vaping is not a harmless lifestyle choice. It is a rapidly normalised pathway into nicotine dependency for our young people, and we cannot afford to ignore what we are seeing in our communities.”
As part of its statutory monitoring function, Te Tiratū has identified persistent respiratory inequities, including an average of 215 Māori children aged 14 and under being hospitalised for asthma each year between 2020 and 2023, at rates 1.9 times higher than non-Māori children.
These inequities are compounded by high levels of deprivation, damp and mould-affected housing, and reduced access to primary care, along with ongoing gaps in access to cessation support and youth health services. Together, these conditions intensify the respiratory risks faced by rangatahi Māori in the context of rising vaping uptake.
Associate Professor Andrew Waa says vaping must be understood within the broader history of commercial nicotine exploitation.
“Tobacco was introduced to Māori by Captain Cook and has since been aggressively promoted by an industry that profits from addiction,” he said.
“Vaping products are designed to be highly addictive, appealing, and easy to use particularly for rangatahi. While they may have a place as a cessation tool for people who smoke, they are not harmless, and they are being marketed in ways that undermine rangatahi wellbeing and tino rangatiratanga within whānau, hapū, and iwi.”
Te Tiratū supports Vaping as a regulated therapeutic product only backed by a strengthened regulatory framework in which vaping products are:
- Available only through accredited health services (pharmacies, cessation services, primary care)
- Subject to strict nicotine limits
- Sold in standardised packaging with reduced appeal features
- Limited to essential flavours for cessation purposes only
- Supported by stronger border and domestic enforcement of illicit supply chains
- Accompanied by accessible vaping cessation support services, including for rangatahi.
The position statement also warns that vaping has been normalised as a “lifestyle product” rather than a therapeutic tool, undermining tobacco control progress and exposing young people to nicotine addiction pathways.
It also highlights the need to prioritise rangatahi wellbeing in definitions of harm, not only adult smoking cessation outcomes.