Protests over government's plans to repeal Smokefree legislation in Auckland and at Parliament

Rallies to protest against government plans to repeal Smokefree legislation took place in Wellington and Auckland on Tuesday.

About 1000 people gathered in front of Parliament and half that in Auckland, marching to ACT leader David Seymour's electorate office.

The amendment to the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Act was due to ban the sale of tobacco to anyone born from January 1 2009, cut the number of retailers allowed and restrict the amount of nicotine allowed in cigarettes.

Māori public health group Hāpai Te Hauora presented a petition signed by about 47,000 people, urging the government not to go through with the repeal, to Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa Packer at Parliament.

Interim chief executive Jason Alexander said most of the country was united on this issue. The government was repealing laws which would help protect future generations, he said.

Labour health spokesperson Dr Ayesha Verrall said New Zealand's smokefree future was in its grasp.

"This is the result of a dirty deal done in a back room."

She pointed to a new Health Coalition Aotearoa survey showing 67 percent of New Zealanders supported the smokefree laws.

MPs from Labour, the Greens, and Te Pāti Māori came out to meet the protesters.

Former MP Hone Harawira addressed the crowd, decrying the "bunch of arseholes" inside government for trying to repeal the laws.

Green MP Hūhana Lyndon, a former community health worker, said it was a "dying shame" that 20 years of work was being undone.

"Our world has changed, we are world leaders, and yet this government is putting it all on the ashtray."

Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke said taking Te Aka Whai Ora out and putting cigarettes back in made no sense. She has accepted the petition along with co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.

The petition, called Put our People Over Profit - Stop the Repeal of the Smokefree Legislation, was launched just two weeks ago. Its preamble accused the coalition government of pandering to 'Big Tobacco' at the expense of New Zealanders' health.

Organisers said the number of signatures showed the strength of feeling, with smoking harm disproportionately affecting Māori and Pacific people. They were calling on Health Minister Shane Reti to meet them on the steps of Parliament.

A protest started at the same time in Auckland, with doctors leaving Auckland City Hospital to lead a march to ACT leader David Seymour's electorate office.

There were about 500 people at the rally, including doctors and nurses who had stepped out from Auckland City Hospital in their lunchbreaks.

One sign carried by a protester read "tax the rich, not the dead poor". Seymour's office appeared to be locked.

Doctors organising the Auckland rally said they were aghast at the plans to ditch the law. The harms from smoking everyday included stokes, heart attack and cancer, they said.

Jim Buckton, nine, and his brother Abe, 11, were at the march telling the government to leave the law alone.

They said they wanted kids like them to be safe, and that was more important than tax revenue.

Former Middlemore Hospital intensive care doctor and advisor to four governments David Galler spoke to the crowd, saying the plans to repeal were "bizarre, shocking, embarrassing and disgraceful".