FRUITY and sweet-flavoured vapes could soon be prohibited in Scotland in a bid to stop children or young people taking up the habit.
A Scottish Green MSP has said she will bring forward legislation to stop firms using “deliberately sweet-toothed tactics.”
But the industry described the plan as a “huge backward and nonsensical step for tobacco harm reduction.”
As 1000’s of adults are switching to a safer nicotine delivery device John Dunne, Director General of the UK Vaping Industry Association, said flavours played a “critical role in helping adult smokers quit their habits through vaping.”
He said: “This will be a huge backward and nonsensical step for tobacco harm reduction in Scotland, and is completely out of touch with the evidence around vaping’s significant role in helping people quit smoking as well as the sentiment of the Scottish people who recently showed in their feedback to a Government consultation that there is no majority for the proposed tightening of the rules on the advertising and promotion of vaping products in the country.
As someone who quit using flavoured devices, this could force people back to smoking cigarettes and also underage people who try vaping may switch to cigarettes.
I have to ask the question; why is alcohol available in a variety of flavours?
How many people die of alcohol each year?
1,245 people died from conditions caused by alcohol in Scotland in 2021, according to latest figures published by National Records of Scotland.
The number of deaths is 5% (55) higher than 2020 and is the highest number of deaths since 2008. More detailed analysis shows the rate of mortality from alcohol-specific causes was 22.3 deaths per 100,000 people in 2021. Whilst this is higher than the 21.5 deaths per 100,000 in 2020, it is not a statistically significant increase, and remains below the peak rate of deaths from alcohol in 2006.
Latest suspected drug deaths report in Scotland
The report on suspected drug death Management Information from Police Scotland shows there were 1,295 deaths between January and December 2021.
Adults should have the freedom of choice which flavours they prefer to quit smoking, it’s a question I thought long and hard about before buying certain flavours but who am I to dictate which flavours you prefer?
I have a much better idea which is to go after companies, shops and websites selling illegal e-cigarettes.
Such as the Elux Legend 3500 puff, the Tornado 7000/10000 puff, the Geek Bar Pro, the Crystal Bar Pro 4000 puff Lost Mary 3500 puff etc. which are all openly available from UK outlets.
There are also vapes specifically aimed at children available through messenger groups and some shameless websites putting profit before ethics.
Many of these vapes contain illegal amounts of nicotine and chemicals; in fact nobody knows what they are buying when they are imported illegally.
In the small town I live 10,000 puff devices are openly on sale or sold “under the counter.”
In recent years, e-cigarettes have become a very popular stop smoking aid in the UK.
Also known as vapes or e-cigs, they’re far less harmful than cigarettes, and can help you quit smoking for good.
They are not recommended for non-smokers and cannot be sold to people under 18 years old.
Research led by the University of Oxford, and funded by Cancer Research UK, has found the strongest evidence yet that e-cigarettes, also known as ‘vapes’, help people to quit smoking better than traditional nicotine replacement therapies, such as patches and chewing gums.
New evidence published today in the Cochrane Library finds high certainty evidence that people are more likely to stop smoking for at least six months using nicotine e-cigarettes, or ‘vapes’, than using nicotine replacement therapies, such as patches and gums. Evidence also suggested that nicotine e-cigarettes led to higher quit rates than e-cigarettes without nicotine, or no stop smoking intervention, but less data contributed to these analyses. The updated Cochrane review includes 78 studies in over 22,000 participants – an addition of 22 studies since the last update in 2021.
So my response to this is going after the criminals selling illegal vapes and the people selling to underage children.
Do not take someone’s freedom of choice or shall we make all alcoholic drinks taste the same?
One flavoured beer, no flavoured vodka or Gin or other spirits. I’ve recently seen Vodka for sale that lights up when you pour it; I wonder who these are aimed at?
78,000 people die each year in the UK from smoking related illnesses compared to zero deaths from vaping.
There were 9,641 deaths related to alcohol-specific causes registered in the UK in 2021, equivalent to 14.8 deaths per 100,000 people.
The MHRA is the competent authority for a notification scheme for e-cigarettes and refill containers in Great Britain and Northern Ireland and is responsible for implementing the majority of provisions under Part 6 of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 (TRPR), as amended.
The TRPR introduced rules which ensure:
- minimum standards for the safety and quality of all e-cigarettes and refill containers (otherwise known as e-liquids)
- that information is provided to consumers so that they can make informed choices
- an environment that protects children from starting to use these products.
The requirements:
- restrict e-cigarette tanks to a capacity of no more than 2ml
- restrict the maximum volume of nicotine-containing e-liquid for sale in one refill container to 10ml
- restrict e-liquids to a nicotine strength of no more than 20mg/ml
- require nicotine-containing products or their packaging to be child-resistant and tamper evident
- ban certain ingredients including colourings, caffeine and taurine
- include new labelling requirements and warnings
- require all e-cigarettes and e-liquids be notified and published by the MHRA before they can be sold
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/e-cigarettes-regulations-for-consumer-products
What is TPD all about; and why should you care?
The Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) or European Tobacco Products Directive (EUTPD) (2014/40/EU) is a directive of the European Union which legislates the sale and merchandising of tobacco and tobacco related products across the EU. The TPD aims to ensure a high level of health protection for European citizens. The Directive entered into force on 19th May 2014 and became applicable in the EU Member States on 20th May 2016.
The TPD stipulates that: The maximum capacity for a “disposable electronic cigarette, a single use cartridge, or a tank” should not exceed 2 mL of e-juice and a maximum of 2mg of nicotine.
