GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS

VAPING GROWTH FAR FROM PLAIN SAILING

DESPITE PUBLIC HEALTH ENGLAND’S REPEATED COMMITMENT TO ITS VIEW THAT VAPING IS 95% SAFERTHAN SMOKING, THE GROWTH OF THE VAPING CATEGORY IS BEING SLOWED UP BY LEGISLATIVECHALLENGES AROUND THE GLOBE.

Vaping has long been touted as the saviour of the tobacco category, yet its growth has stalled recently as governments around the globe struggle with what can be a complex set of products. Despite the fact that Public Health England has consistently said vaping is 95% safer than smoking and despite the fact that the Menthol Ban should have triggered a spike in vaping sales, the category still seems mired in misinformation and, at times, malevolent scaremongering.

The smooth route to growth has been anything but and, as the following case studies show, plenty of challenges still lie ahead as the vaping industry struggles to have its products understood.

CASE STUDY 1: THE NETHERLANDS FLAVOURS BAN PROPOSAL

The Dutch Government has announced plans to ban flavoured electronic cigarettesnext year in a bid, it says, to make vaping less attractive to young people.

The government has claimed that the sweet tastes of flavours such as strawberryand mojito has made vaping more popular amongst young non-smokers. DeputyHealth Minister Paul Blokhuis said: “The smoke-free generation we see coming alsoneeds to be free of electronic cigarettes.”

Responding to the plans, UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) Director JohnDunne said: “It is completely wrong to conflate smoking tobacco with using vapingdevices which often contain no tobacco or nicotine. There is little evidence thatsuggests that vaping encourages young people to start smoking. The recent PublicHealth England (PHE) Vaping in England Report found that current vaping is mainlyconcentrated in young people who have experience of smoking. Less than 1% of 11to 18-year-olds who have never smoked are current vapers.”

Dunne also points out that, rather than pushing non-smokers towards smokingcigarettes, vaping products can be extremely effective at helping smokers quit. Thesame PHE report found that when vaping products were used in an attempt to quit,either alone or with licensed medication, success rates were comparable to, if nothigher than, licensed medication alone.

“We would call on the Dutch government to rethink this decision which could havethe significant unintended consequence of deterring those looking to stop smoking,”Dunne concluded.

CASE STUDY 2: UNITED KINGDOM VAT CHANGES DEMANDED

The UKVIA is calling upon the UK Government to consider a similar VAT rate for vaping to that currently applied to Nicotine Replacement Therapies (NRT). The call comes as the Chancellor of the Exchequer is widely reported to be looking at reducing the VAT rate in the wake of the coronavirus as the Government last did during the 2008 economic downturn.

In a letter to the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, the UKVIA has urged the Government to consider a level playing field in regard to the VAT rate between NRT and vaping products, to support adult smokers who would otherwise not quit smoking to make the switch to vaping.

The letter points to a PHE Vaping in England Report which found that when vaping products were used in an attempt to quit, either alone or with licensed medication, success rates were comparable to, if not higher than, licensed medication alone.

It highlights the current VAT chasm between NRT products (5%) and vaping (the full 20% VAT and the same as conventional cigarettes) despite the fact that e-cigarettes, whilst not a cessation product, have significant potential to have a positive impact on public health. This is backed up by research commissioned by the NHS last year which revealed that e-cigs are twice as effective as nicotine patches, gum or sprays for quitting smoking.

UKVIA’s John Dunne says: “The vaping sector has been a major retail success story this century and is playing a major role in getting smokers to quit, thereby helping cut the huge annual cost of healthcare associated with smoking.

“Yet according to research nearly one in 10 smokers do not switch to e-cigarettes because they consider them to cost too much. Ensuring that the price of vaping products remains much lower than cigarettes is vitally important in continuing to encourage the some seven million smokers in the UK, who otherwise do not quit, to make the switch.

“Whilst the country is still very much in the recovery phase of Covid-19, a significant VAT reduction for vape products would pay back both economically and from a healthcare perspective.”

CASE STUDY 3: AUSTRALIA IMPORT BAN POSTPONED

The Australian Department of Health has halted a ban on importing nicotine liquids into Australia. The ban was set to come into force from 1 July and would have prevented the import of e-cigarettes and nicotine refills for an initial 12-month period, with possible penalties of up to A$220,000.

The ban has been delayed for six months to allow the Australian authorities to undertake a formal review and consultation around the classification of nicotine. The ban is now set to commence on 1 January 2021.

The Australian government has said that the decision was made to assist those who were using vaping to help them quit smoking.

The Australasian Association of Convenience Stores (AACS) has argued that the policy should be abandoned altogether as it makes it harder for people to quit smoking.

AACS CEO Jeff Rogut said: “There are 400,000 ex-smokers in Australia who now use vaping, and as it is legal, regulated and taxed in every OECD nation bar Turkey and Australia, the government should instead look to better regulate the Australian market.

“Making it harder for people to access products that research shows are safer than traditional tobacco, and which have helped many people quit smoking, makes no sense. We need to make it easier for people to access such products.”

“In the UK the clear advice from health authorities, including Public Health England, is that e-cigarettes can be an effective aid to stopping smoking and staying smoke free. It is clear that vaping is far less harmful to the respiratory system than smoking.”