UK Parliament Committee concludes that vaping products should not be treated in the same way as cigarettes and are not a ‘gateway’ to smoking.

Vape Business Ireland (VBI) has welcomed a new report from the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee which held five oral evidence sessions between January and May 2018, to examine the evidence on the health impacts and on vaping products role as a smoking cessation tool. They received over 100 pieces of written evidence and held hearing from 25 witnesses.

The Committee concluded that:

Vaping products should not be treated in the same way as conventional cigarettes;
e-cigarettes are not a significant ‘gateway’, including for young non-smokers, to conventional smoking and do not pose a significant risk through second-hand inhalation;
NHS England should set a policy of mental health facilities allowing vaping product use by patients unless trusts can demonstrate evidence-based reasons for not doing so;

The UK Government should continue to annually review the evidence on the health effects of vaping products;

And are calling on the UK Government to reconsider limits on refill strengths and tank sizes; and the approval systems for stop smoking therapies such vaping products.

The final report and press release will be available here On Friday 17 August.

In direct contrast to their counterparts across the globe, the HSE and other public health campaigners in Ireland do not endorse vaping or even provide basic information on vaping products to Irish smokers looking to switch to vaping on Quit.ie. Stop Smoking New Zealand, The American Cancer Society Public Health England, Cancer Research UK and many others have endorsed vaping as a viable alternative to smoking. Supported by information from their State, millions of smokers have embraced vaping as alternative to smoking across the globe, while we have an unattainable 5% smoking prevalence rate target under Tobacco Free Ireland 2025 target (see Notes to the Editor).

VBI Director Michael Kenneally said “This report, along with many others published by organisations like Cancer Research UK, Public Health England, Royal College of Physicians and ASH UK, again clearly emphasises the lack of action by the HSE and Department of Health. Quit.ie needs to provide information on vaping products to Irish smokers who want to take steps to quit smoking and so we continue to call on the Department of Health and HSE to reassess their position on vaping. We also call on members of the Oireachtas to undergo a public hearing on vaping to hear directly from the experts and vapers in order to create a open and honest debate on vaping in Ireland.”

Mr Kenneally continued “VBI members do not position the products as being “without risk” or “safe”. Such a binary distinction is highly unscientific: air travel is safe, yet some planes crash. The key is to put risk and harm in context and I think this is a position that never gets discussed in Ireland.”