Loading "These important changes will stop tobacco giants from misleading Victorians and putting lives at risk – and they’ll be in place in time for the 2019 Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix," she said. Under its partnership with McLaren, BAT had used McLaren's F1 cars to advertise its "A Better Tomorrow" initiative, which promotes "less risky" tobacco and nicotine products. BAT is also working closely with McLaren Applied Technologies to collaborate and share technology "expertise" including batteries and design. In February, BAT chief marketing officer Kingsley Wheaton said the partnership would allow the company to "drive greater resonance" of its products, including e-cigarettes. The new ban means it will no longer be able to advertise this partnership in Victoria.

Loading The laws extend the definition of tobacco or e-cigarette advertising to include words or designs closely associated with a tobacco manufacturer. On Friday, a British American Tobacco spokesman said e-cigarettes werenot tobacco products and should be regulated separately. "We would welcome the opportunity to meet with any government agency to discuss properly regulating these products, so that the hundreds of thousands of existing vapers in Australia can legally access a product that meets basic safety and quality standards.” In February The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald revealed Australian authorities were investigating whether a new deal between Philip Morris International and Ferrari could be in breach of tobacco advertising bans by promoting Philip Morris products.

Both companies argued they were not promoting any specific products in their advertising. Philip Morris has had a lucrative sponsorship deal with Ferrari for decades, with the famous red and white livery on Ferrari's racing cars, uniforms and advertising historically featuring the Marlboro cigarette logo. The new branding, featuring a white chevron on a red background, is reminiscent of the Marlboro logo. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Since 2007, strict controls on tobacco advertising worldwide have led to the gradual removal of the branding, and the F1 team formally dropped the "Marlboro" from Ferrari cars and uniforms in 2011.

But suspicions were raised at the 2018 Japanese Grand Prix in October that Philip Morris was trying to keep its branding in the public eye – despite the formal bans on tobacco advertising. At that event, Ferrari's cars raced emblazoned with a new logo sponsored by Philip Morris, called Mission Winnow. The Mission Winnow logo is long, and reminiscent of a cigarette. The chevron on its tip is similar to the Marlboro logo. Sebastian Vettel in the revamped Scuderi Ferrari branding, featuring the Mission Winnow logo. Credit:Marco Ugarte/AP Its website suggests Mission Winnow is predominantly a brand revamp for the tobacco company, spruiking its innovation, excellence, and "innovative solutions to long-standing problems".

It doesn't specifically mention tobacco products, but it does promote Philip Morris' efforts to transform "not only our company but an entire industry for the 1.1 billion people who smoke and those around them". This, it says, can be realised through the creation of "smoke-free alternatives" to cigarettes, which the company is testing in the laboratory. The federal Department of Health and Victoria's Department of Health and Human Services launched investigations into Philip Morris' new branding, including a complaint lodged about Network 10 and Foxtel for showing the logos in their broadcasts of the Japanese Grand Prix late last year. In March, AMCA found there had been no such breach of tobacco advertising laws. The government included the vaping advertising ban in an omnibus package of legislation, which included reforms to medicinal cannabis laws, among others.

Liberal Democrats MP David Limbrick, who unsuccessfully moved to remove the vaping advertising ban from the legislation, said the government was treating e-cigarettes as though they were as dangerous as cigarettes. "It doesn't make sense to treat the two things the same way," he said. "The only form of tobacco that's legal here [in Victoria] is the deadliest form." Reason Party leader Fiona Patten, who unsuccessfully moved to amend the legislation, criticised the government for this approach. "The bill last night repealed the state’s Medicinal Cannabis Act and, as such, my simple amendment would have removed the need for state approval to prescribe medicinal cannabis as it is already covered federally by the TGA," she said. "So in effect, just to ban logos on motorbikes, the government has increased the burden and waiting times on patients needing to access medicinal cannabis. It’s just crazy."