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Vaping: Government could ban candy-flavoured vapes and hike price of Elf Bars to stop children using them
Ministers are considering banning candy-flavoured vapes and slapping disposable vaping devices with a new levy in a bid to crackdown on their use among children, the i can reveal.
The Department for Health and Social Care is looking at a range of options to prevent the rise of adolescents taking up the habit amid growing concerns that the number of under-18s vaping has nearly doubled in two years.
It is illegal to sell vapes to anyone below the age of 18, but national surveys have shown an increasing trend of 11-17 year olds using the devices, with health leaders blaming the rise on the marketing and flavours associated with them.
Another option on the table is introducing a levy on disposable vapes, such as the increasingly popular Elf Bars, which come in a range of bold colours, while a crackdown on marketing that is aimed at adolescents is also under consideration.
Such a move would be met with significant opposition from the industry, but is attracting support among charities and campaigners who want to bring the price of disposable vapes into greater alignment with reusable ones, and less affordable for children.
The plans are being drawn up as part of the Government’s response to the Khan Review into smoking, which urged ministers to “do everything they possibly can to prevent children and young people from vaping, including by banning child friendly packaging and descriptions”.
A senior government source with knowledge of the plans told i: “We will be responding to the Khan Review sometime in the Spring. It will look at vaping, with the benefits it has for getting people to stop smoking. Obviously, when it comes to kids vaping, we do have to nip it in the bud.”
Deborah Arnott, Chief Executive of health charity ASH, called for a new tax on disposables to be included in next month’s Budget.
“Children who vape mainly use cheap disposables, which are attractive, brightly coloured and cheap, they’re widely available for under a fiver,” Ms Arnott said. “Increasing the tax on single use disposable vapes in the March Budget would be easy to do and by making them less affordable could reduce both child vaping and the vast quantities of single use vapes being thrown into landfill.”
Source: The I, 24 February 2023
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Wales: Illegal tobacco offered to a third of child smokers
About a third of children who smoke have been offered illegal tobacco, new research has found. The Action on Smoking and Health Wales (ASH Wales) study comes as the charity launches a campaign to tackle the sale of illegal tobacco to children.
More than 1,000 11 to 16-year-olds in Wales took part in the survey - the biggest of its kind in the UK.
Suzanne Cass, Chief Executive of ASH Wales, said about 80% of people who start smoking have their first cigarette before the age of 18.
"This is an addiction of childhood so we need to do everything that we possibly can to make sure that these products do not get into the hands of children," said Ms Cass.
The 32% of child smokers that had been offered illegal tobacco said it had been by friends, family, in educational settings or at shops. About 25% said they had bought them.
ASH Wales, Trading Standards and the Welsh government have launched the No Ifs-No Butts website to encourage people to anonymously report illegal tobacco sales.
Illegal tobacco takes numerous forms including "cheap whites" - mass-produced cigarettes smuggled from one country to another - fakes designed to resemble famous brands or genuine products where no duty has been paid.
Reports gathered from the No Ifs-No Butts website have already led to raids across Wales.
Last month, a quarter of a million cigarettes and 20kg of rolling tobacco were seized in raids in north Wales.
Source: BBC news, 26 February 2023
See also: No Ifs- No Butts
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Facebook ads opposing a ban on vaping in Australia failed to disclose tobacco company backing
A pro-vaping lobby group has run a series of advertisements targeting those over 18 without disclosing the ads were sponsored by big tobacco, despite Facebook requiring groups advertising political or social issues to disclose who paid for the ad.
An initiative of British American Tobacco Australia, “Responsible Vaping Australia” emerged in November, and on Facebook describes itself as an “education research centre”. It claims to represent retailers who want to sell vapes responsibly.
In late December, just after the federal health minister, Mark Butler, announced the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) had opened sweeping vaping reforms to consultation, Responsible Vaping Australia launched its advertisements.
But the ad campaigns, including the latest which ran from 13-19 February, do not target retailers. Facebook data from the February campaign shows users aged 18 and above with an interest in nightclubs, pubs, bars and clubbing subculture were the target audience, and were where the bulk of the advertising spending was directed. Advertisers can select the demographics, interests and behaviours of people they want to see their ads.
The ads state that “Australia needs practical, common sense solutions on vaping policy. The government wants to hear from you” and link to a petition calling on the government to exempt nicotine vaping products from the Poisons Standard and to allow retailers to sell nicotine vaping products.
The latest ad states “Australia’s current laws have created an enormous demand for black market vaping products”. The ad carried no required disclaimers about who funded it.
According to Meta, which owns Facebook, “Advertisers can’t run ads that promote the sale or use of tobacco or nicotine products or related paraphernalia, including, but not limited to: electronic cigarettes, vaporisers or other products that simulate smoking”. However, the ads were allowed because they promoted “social issues” tied to vaping.
It is unclear how long the ads were allowed to remain public. Only 16 of 31 ads appear to have run with disclaimers. Many of the disclaimers simply say “sponsored” without saying by whom.
Source: The Guardian, 25 February 2023
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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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