Richard Edwards
@predwards.bsky.social
Head of Public Health, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University. Research focuses mainly on policy to achieve tobacco 'endgame' goals. Have lots of CDs (punk, reggae, blues ...)
Paper led by Caroline Shaw modelled impact of increase in EV fleet found health gains from reduced air pollution overwhelmed by greater injury-related harm from increased car use. Key message: interventions are needed to eliminate a car-dominated transport system. jech.bmj.com/content/79/1...
October 15, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Paper led by Caroline Shaw modelled impact of increase in EV fleet found health gains from reduced air pollution overwhelmed by greater injury-related harm from increased car use. Key message: interventions are needed to eliminate a car-dominated transport system. jech.bmj.com/content/79/1...
Open letter to Australian Government demanding end to university fees regime that penalise students studying humanities and social sciences. theaha.org.au/wp-content/u...
July 27, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Open letter to Australian Government demanding end to university fees regime that penalise students studying humanities and social sciences. theaha.org.au/wp-content/u...
Nicola Willis strongly supported the Equal Pay Amendment Act in 2020. She now supports introducing legislation under urgency (i.e. with minimal consultation) to halt existing pay equity claims and move the goalposts so as to make it more diffcult to bring new claims. thespinoff.co.nz/politics/07-...
May 7, 2025 at 10:38 AM
Nicola Willis strongly supported the Equal Pay Amendment Act in 2020. She now supports introducing legislation under urgency (i.e. with minimal consultation) to halt existing pay equity claims and move the goalposts so as to make it more diffcult to bring new claims. thespinoff.co.nz/politics/07-...
@janethoek.bsky.social post on the Conversation on Australia's new policies to reduce the appeal of smoking & encourage and support people who smoke to stop. Stark contrast with approach of Govt in Aotearoa. List of measures here: www.health.gov.au/topics/smoki...
April 7, 2025 at 10:00 PM
@janethoek.bsky.social post on the Conversation on Australia's new policies to reduce the appeal of smoking & encourage and support people who smoke to stop. Stark contrast with approach of Govt in Aotearoa. List of measures here: www.health.gov.au/topics/smoki...
"PMI recognizes that a decline in the sales volume of our cigarettes—and ... our combustible product portfolio—is an imperative component of our ambition to deliver a smoke-free future. And we’re making rapid progress toward that goal." It's target is 550 billion units by 2025. Judge for yourself.
April 3, 2025 at 9:02 AM
"PMI recognizes that a decline in the sales volume of our cigarettes—and ... our combustible product portfolio—is an imperative component of our ambition to deliver a smoke-free future. And we’re making rapid progress toward that goal." It's target is 550 billion units by 2025. Judge for yourself.
2/ Measures include:
- new pack warnings
- packs inserts to encourage & support people who smoke to quit
- new warnings on cigarette sticks (the 2nd country to introduce this measure)
- banning menthol to make smoking cigarettes less appealing
- standard tobacco pack & cigarette stick sizes
- new pack warnings
- packs inserts to encourage & support people who smoke to quit
- new warnings on cigarette sticks (the 2nd country to introduce this measure)
- banning menthol to make smoking cigarettes less appealing
- standard tobacco pack & cigarette stick sizes
April 2, 2025 at 12:55 AM
2/ Measures include:
- new pack warnings
- packs inserts to encourage & support people who smoke to quit
- new warnings on cigarette sticks (the 2nd country to introduce this measure)
- banning menthol to make smoking cigarettes less appealing
- standard tobacco pack & cigarette stick sizes
- new pack warnings
- packs inserts to encourage & support people who smoke to quit
- new warnings on cigarette sticks (the 2nd country to introduce this measure)
- banning menthol to make smoking cigarettes less appealing
- standard tobacco pack & cigarette stick sizes
PM Luxon and Act's Brooke Van Velden announced a new big idea to tackle the really big issues facing Aotearoa today: the 'roadcones hotline'. I wonder if they are aware of what a great success this was when John Major in the UK did the same in the 1990s?
www.independent.co.uk/news/cones-h...
www.independent.co.uk/news/cones-h...
March 31, 2025 at 12:47 PM
PM Luxon and Act's Brooke Van Velden announced a new big idea to tackle the really big issues facing Aotearoa today: the 'roadcones hotline'. I wonder if they are aware of what a great success this was when John Major in the UK did the same in the 1990s?
www.independent.co.uk/news/cones-h...
www.independent.co.uk/news/cones-h...
New research showing that revised school lunches programme in Aotearoa New Zealand is falling well below nutritional standards. www.phcc.org.nz/briefing/aot...
March 30, 2025 at 10:50 PM
New research showing that revised school lunches programme in Aotearoa New Zealand is falling well below nutritional standards. www.phcc.org.nz/briefing/aot...
Report from pilot scheme promoting ebikes in a Maori community in Aotearoa New Zealand. Research by team from Otago University Wellington & Kokiri Marae found providing access to ebikes & supporting measures had multiple benefits in a low cycling setting. www.nzta.govt.nz/assets/resou...
March 30, 2025 at 9:23 PM
Report from pilot scheme promoting ebikes in a Maori community in Aotearoa New Zealand. Research by team from Otago University Wellington & Kokiri Marae found providing access to ebikes & supporting measures had multiple benefits in a low cycling setting. www.nzta.govt.nz/assets/resou...
New paper from NZ ITC/EASE study: 3/4s of people who smoke regret starting & intend to quit but >85% (>95% people smoking daily) report feeling addicted. Imagine impact minimising nicotine to make cigs non-addictive would have had if NZ Govt had not repealed this measure! nzmj.org.nz/journal/vol-...
March 28, 2025 at 3:29 AM
New paper from NZ ITC/EASE study: 3/4s of people who smoke regret starting & intend to quit but >85% (>95% people smoking daily) report feeling addicted. Imagine impact minimising nicotine to make cigs non-addictive would have had if NZ Govt had not repealed this measure! nzmj.org.nz/journal/vol-...
Study analysing trends in vaping & smoking among Year 10 students in NZ finds no support for claims in previous analysis that increase in vaping 'displaced' smoking. Rather, decline in youth smoking was continuation of long-standing trend. www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
March 25, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Study analysing trends in vaping & smoking among Year 10 students in NZ finds no support for claims in previous analysis that increase in vaping 'displaced' smoking. Rather, decline in youth smoking was continuation of long-standing trend. www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
Main narrative in road lobby submissions: "solutions to climate change are assumed to come from individual action driving business change in a free market, with the Government taking a small role to partner with industry, enable deregulation & support voluntary action by business."
February 13, 2025 at 10:45 PM
Main narrative in road lobby submissions: "solutions to climate change are assumed to come from individual action driving business change in a free market, with the Government taking a small role to partner with industry, enable deregulation & support voluntary action by business."
Joel Maxwell was pulling no punches in this article on the consequences (more cancer, more preventable deaths and suffering according to modelling) due to the government repealing New Zealand's world-leading legislation to achieve the Smokefree Aotearoa goal. www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3605...
December 23, 2024 at 7:11 PM
Joel Maxwell was pulling no punches in this article on the consequences (more cancer, more preventable deaths and suffering according to modelling) due to the government repealing New Zealand's world-leading legislation to achieve the Smokefree Aotearoa goal. www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3605...
ASPIRE Aotearoa are running a course on February 12: "The Smokefree Aotearoa 2025 goal: How can we get there now?" There is a 25% early-bird discount for the 2025 Public Health Summer School which ends on Thursday 19 December. Further details here: www.otago.ac.nz/wellington/d...
December 17, 2024 at 7:57 PM
ASPIRE Aotearoa are running a course on February 12: "The Smokefree Aotearoa 2025 goal: How can we get there now?" There is a 25% early-bird discount for the 2025 Public Health Summer School which ends on Thursday 19 December. Further details here: www.otago.ac.nz/wellington/d...
Looking forward to visiting my new local library when we head off to Adelaide in the new year. www.instagram.com/reel/DDa2Go8...
December 13, 2024 at 8:23 PM
Looking forward to visiting my new local library when we head off to Adelaide in the new year. www.instagram.com/reel/DDa2Go8...
Judith Collins the smiling assassin. Have a look (and weep) at the tributes to the fund from the 30 year celebration here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=swei...
December 4, 2024 at 4:18 AM
Judith Collins the smiling assassin. Have a look (and weep) at the tributes to the fund from the 30 year celebration here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=swei...
If you haven't seen these - brilliant cartoons on Te Tiriti Principles Bill by Sharon Murdoch.
November 22, 2024 at 1:07 AM
If you haven't seen these - brilliant cartoons on Te Tiriti Principles Bill by Sharon Murdoch.
New Surgeon General's report focuses on addressing inequities caused by tobacco smoking. Full report and summaries available here. www.cdc.gov/tobacco-surg... Final conclusion from key findings below.
November 20, 2024 at 6:43 PM
New Surgeon General's report focuses on addressing inequities caused by tobacco smoking. Full report and summaries available here. www.cdc.gov/tobacco-surg... Final conclusion from key findings below.
Anaru Waa and @janethoek.bsky.social of ASPIRE Aotearoa received major awards at the recent Oceania Tobacco Control Conference in Gold Coast. Very well done. www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroo...
November 12, 2024 at 6:01 AM
Anaru Waa and @janethoek.bsky.social of ASPIRE Aotearoa received major awards at the recent Oceania Tobacco Control Conference in Gold Coast. Very well done. www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroo...
I mostly write posts about public health policy, particularly tobacco use related ones, such as this on Twitter: x.com/ProfEdwardsN... which references a recent op-ed we published on Newsroom. newsroom.co.nz/2024/10/07/t...
November 12, 2024 at 12:06 AM
I mostly write posts about public health policy, particularly tobacco use related ones, such as this on Twitter: x.com/ProfEdwardsN... which references a recent op-ed we published on Newsroom. newsroom.co.nz/2024/10/07/t...
This is my first post on this platform as I migrate away from X/Twitter. I am a Public Health researcher from Aotearoa NZ who focuses on research to achieve a Smokefree Aotearoa. I co-direct the ASPIRE Aotearoa research centre at the University of Otago, Wellington. See aspireaotearoa.org.nz
November 12, 2024 at 12:01 AM
This is my first post on this platform as I migrate away from X/Twitter. I am a Public Health researcher from Aotearoa NZ who focuses on research to achieve a Smokefree Aotearoa. I co-direct the ASPIRE Aotearoa research centre at the University of Otago, Wellington. See aspireaotearoa.org.nz