The Richmond Police District had seven new probationary constables start work yesterday, after graduating from the NSW Police Academy at Goulburn last Friday.

The seven 'newbies', as they are affectionately known, will be distributed throughout the region.

"The majority of them will be here at Lismore, but also a couple will be at Ballina and Casino," Commander Dave Roptell told the Lismore App.

"They will be married up with a buddy, so to speak. For four weeks, they work with a training officer, and then for a further four weeks after that, they will be with someone else, but that could also be with an experienced officer as a field training officer, and they learn from that person in the initial period."

Under the new NSW Police recruiting system, newbies can nominate where they would like to be posted. Commander (Cdr) Roptell said four of them were locals wanting to be posted back home, while the other three asked to be posted to the Northern Rivers.

"We've got two people who live in the Penrith area, and they requested to come to Lismore, which is great to see."

CBD safety has gained significant attention across various media networks and social media platforms. The return of the PACER (Police, Ambulance, Clinical, Early, Response) program is high on the agenda.

"At the moment, it's something that we're looking at reintroducing. We're working with all other government agencies as we speak, and we've had initial communication. The PACER program is headed by health (NSW Health). However, we are advocating to see what avenue we can go down to get it back."

Cdr Roptell said he is not sure how long the process will take. He has not worked with the PACER program before, but has heard it has had some success.

Anyone walking around the CBD block last week would have noticed that many new convenience stores had the shutters down during working hours.

Following the NSW Government's decision to drastically increase the fines and jail terms for selling illegal or unlicensed tobacco products, $1.5 million and 7 years' imprisonment for individuals and higher for corporations, the Richmond Police District play the law enforcement role for NSW Health.

"We work closely with health on this. We are proactively visiting tobacconists, and we aim to continue to work with health to address the problem."

The Lismore understands that a warning visit by police last week informed owners and managers that future raids would be conducted if it is reported or known that they sell illegal or unlicensed tobacco products.

Cdr Roptell said his team are monitoring the situation.

"We monitor this off our own bat, mainly from the community and other areas that are reporting it to us."

"We still have to work on the strategy going forward. We need to speak to health, who are the main combat agency for that."

With the cost of housing and general living still very high, people all around Australia, not just in Lismore and the Northern Rivers, are turning to illegal tobacco products. Apparently, you can purchase a packet of illegal cigarettes for $10 to $15. If you purchase a legal brand, it will cost between $45 to $50. If you smoke two packs a week, that is a saving of $70 a week.

The federal government tax on a stick of cigarettes is currently $1.40, which adjusts with inflation. For a packet of 20 cigarettes, this means $28 per packet goes to the government.

The price of tobacco has increased significantly in the past 50 years. In 1973, a pack of cigarettes sold for 49 cents, and in 2025, it sells for an average $48.10. Between 2010 and 2021, the price increase was 260% due to a tax hike and eight annual 12.5% tax increases.

It is easy to see why the black market has grown, as has its customer base.

However, the number of people smoking has more than halved from 1991 (24%) to 2022-2023 (8.3%). This has kept more people out of the hospital system with smoking-related issues.

Whatever view you take, it is difficult to see this situation ending anytime soon.