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Illegal super-strength vapes popular with children are being sold online disguised as Cadbury chocolates to get past worried parents.
The ElfBar and GeekBarPro devices - which feature liquid with two times the legal nicotine strength and three times the capacity - are being promoted on teenage favourite platform TikTok. In one video from a now-deactivated account the vapes are hidden inside Cadbury “Heroes" packaging and put into an envelope for posting. The disguise means if parents open up the delivery, nothing would suggest it was anything other than a sweet treat for their children.
Health charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) said it would be reporting all the pop-up selling accounts to the government’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Deborah Arnott, Chief Executive of ASH, said: “The promotion of vapes hidden in chocolate packs on TikTok showing how they can be smuggled to children without their parents realising is outrageous. Sales of these illegal products have been growing rapidly, and every time one route is closed down another pops up. We’ll be reporting this to the MHRA and local authority trading standards who are responsible for regulation and enforcement. Much stronger enforcement action is needed if we are to stop these products being sold and hit those who sell them hard with the full penalties allowed by law.”
Source: Daily Mail, 7 October 2021
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Over £170,000 of national funding has been awarded to the Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes (BLMK) Integrated Care System (ICS) as part of a pilot scheme.
The funding is set to further develop a social prescribing service for vulnerable children and young people in the area. The pilot programme will provide up to 12 weeks of funded access for physical activity, social and creative groups, and specialist support for weight management, drug and alcohol use, smoking, mental health and homelessness.
Sanhita Chakrabarti, Clinical Lead for the project, said: “The programme is targeted at children and young people aged 11-18 that do not currently have access to physical, social or emotional support services. This could be because they are below the thresholds to be eligible for these services, or they have been put off by previous experiences. It also supports the ‘invisible’ young people that have difficulties which are not on the surface. By working with young people, listening to them and putting a bespoke package of care around them, we are able to support behaviour change and engage, motivate and empower the individual to make changes to their lifestyle and to access other support as needed.”
Source: MKFM, 7 October 2021
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A cancer charity has welcomed the implementation of a ban in Northern Ireland on smoking in cars carrying children.
Cancer Focus Northern Ireland said the move from the Health Minister Robin Swann aimed to improve the health of under-18s. Northern Ireland is now the last UK nation to make the move, with England and Wales implementing the ban in 2015 with Scotland and the Republic of Ireland the following year.
Richard Spratt, chief executive of Cancer Focus Northern Ireland, said: “Cancer Focus NI has campaigned on tobacco issues for more than 50 years, and we have a vision for a tobacco-free Northern Ireland by 2035. This is a positive move in the right direction. In the near future, we would also like to see smoking stubbed out wherever children play or learn, including playgrounds, public parks and theme parks. We have already protected adults in workplaces and public places from second-hand smoke. It is high time we gave our young people the same protection. We also know that children who regularly see adults smoke are more likely to try smoking. We firmly believe that this move could help protect children’s health and reduce their perception that smoking is normal behaviour.”
The latest ban follows other measures to steer young people in Northern Ireland away from smoking in recent years. These include the prohibition of tobacco sales in vending machines, tobacco displays in shops, tougher sanctions on retailers caught selling tobacco to children; standardised packaging, and a ban on selling cigarettes in packs of ten.
Source: Belfast Telegraph, 7 October 2021
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In September 2021, ASH and SPECTRUM submitted a joint representation to HM Treasury’s Spending Review (SR21) and Budget. The representation is organised around three key areas:
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Strengthening the UK’s tax base
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Sustainable long-term funding for enhanced public health
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Maintaining the UK’s position as a global leader in tobacco control
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The Health Foundation has published a new report calling on the government to increase funding for public health following years of underinvestment. It reveals that the public health grant has been cut by 24% in real terms per capita since 2015/16 - equivalent to a reduction of £1 billion. The new analysis reveals how the reduction in overall funding for the public health grant has impacted different services, including stop smoking services and tobacco control, which have had the greatest real terms fall in funding with a 33% reduction.
The Health Foundation has calculated that an additional investment of £1.4 billion a year by 2024-25 is now needed to restore the cut to the grant and keep pace with rising demand and costs.
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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.
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