The U.K. will embrace a New Zealand-style generational tobacco ban if the Labour Party wins the next elections, reports the Daily Mail, citing a BBC interview with Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Wes Streeting.
Interviewed by BBC Radio 4, Streeting said he was keen to adopt a plan that would be workable if Labour won the next election.
“The question for me on the New Zealand-style smoking ban isn’t whether it’s desirable because I think in policy terms, and in terms of public opinion, interestingly, I think there is an appetite and a policy driver there to do it,” he said.
Ministers have previously set an objective for England to be smoke-free by 2030. An independent review by Javed Khan, ordered by former Health Secretary Sajid Javid, was published in August and recommended a series of actions to help eradicate smoking in England.
Khan warned that, without further action, England will miss the 2030 target by at least seven years, and the poorest areas in society will not meet it until 2044.
Smoking rates in the U.K. have fallen from about half of the population in the 1970s to around just 15 percent now.
Knowledge Action Change (KAC) has published a briefing to help policymakers, health officials and consumers better understand the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The 10th edition of this event, which normally takes place every two years, is scheduled for November in Panama.
While decisions made at the conference are likely to significantly impact tobacco companies and their customers, industry representatives and organizations advocating for access to safer nicotine products have traditionally been barred from attending the event.
As a result, tobacco harm reduction has been getting short rift at COP meetings despite the fact that the concept is an integral part of the FCTC.
“Harm reduction is explicitly named as one of three tobacco control strategies in the opening lines of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, but at present, the indications are that COP10 is unlikely to result in any decisions that support consumer access to safer nicotine products,” said KAC Director Gerry Stimson in a statement.
“Parties to the FCTC must seize the opportunity in Panama to consider evidence from countries where tobacco harm reduction is saving lives, including the U.K., New Zealand, Sweden, Norway and Japan—and ask why the WHO and its influential philanthropic funders are refusing to do the same.
“With no media present, FCTC COP meetings are shrouded in a secrecy more akin to a U.N. Security Council meeting—and in direct contrast to other COP meetings, for example those on climate change. This briefing paper gives policymakers, health officials and consumers more insight into the processes of COP10 and the opportunity to engage more fully prior to and during the event in Panama,” said Stimson
There is a major trust gap in vaping among smokers, with over half now believing they’re just as harmful as cigarettes or more harmful than cigarettes.
The poll of 2,000 smokers revealed a growing distrust in switching to vapes. Nearly 38 percent who lack trust, say it could stop them from attempting to quit their smoking habits through vaping in the future.
The government’s independent Kahn Review said vaping had a central role to play in a smokefree future across the country, with more than 6.5 million people still smoking in the U.K. And evidence last year by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) re-confirmed that vaping was at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking.
But according to the Adult Smokers Trust inVaping study conducted by One Poll and commissioned by SMOORE, pioneers in inhalation technology, 29 percent only trust vaping a little as a method to quit smoking, whilst 13 percent do not trust it at all.
And of those whose trust is diminishing, 35 percent cite the lack of independent long term clinical research showing vaping to be less harmful than smoking. While 31 percent are concerned about the lack of any information available about the harm profile of different vape products. Other factors that had caused a lack of trust included: negative reports and studies that smokers had come across, inconsistency of government attitudes across the world towards vaping, the growing black market for vapes, and the view of the World Health Organization on vaping.
“There’s a major push to get smokers to move to vape products, but as of now, they just do not have all the information they need to make an informed decision to switch,” said Chenxing Pei, a senior aerosol engineer at the Smoore Centre for Analysis, Testing, and Safety Assessment, in a press release publish by the U.K. Vaping Industry Association.
“It’s vital smokers are confident enough to switch, especially since health minister Neil O’Brien said the government must ‘exploit the huge potential of vaping to help adult smokers to quit.’
“But reducing or quitting is incredibly difficult, it’s imperative to give them the belief that what they are attempting isn’t going to be a waste of time.
“And if vaping is to be viewed as a credible way to quit, urgent efforts need to be made to ensure smokers trust these products to have the desired impact.”
The research also revealed how trust among these smokers could be regained, with 30 percent claiming public health campaigns promoting the evidence-based facts could turn the tide. Better education of doctors to give more advice on how vaping can be an effective way to reduce harm caused by smoking, was cited as another key way to build trust.
Meanwhile, 21 percent would welcome advertising regulations for vaping companies to be lifted—as long as they are promoting evidence from credible sources.
But confusion persists among 68 percent of smokers when it comes to understanding which products would be suitable to help quit. And 70 percent now “don’t know who to believe” when it comes to vape products.
Three quarters of smokers want information to be made available on the harm profile of the vape product at the point of purchase. With 87 percent of these saying it is important to know exactly what it is you are inhaling. Many are looking for clarification about the chemical constituents (60 percent), carbon residues (46 percent) and heavy metal content (44 percent) in their vapes.
However, of those who smoke and vape, 74 percent initially started to reduce their reliance on cigarettes, with 58 percent of these claiming they were successful.
The study coincides with Smoore establishing an independent think tank of scientific, smoking cessation and compliance experts from the U.K. and U.S. to lay the foundations for an industry-wide harm reduction rating system that can be communicated to consumers on product packaging or accessed via a QR code.
“The concept of tobacco harm reduction is not widely understood by smokers, and there are widespread misperceptions regarding the relative safety of vaping products compared with cigarette smoking among the general public,” said Ian Fearon, one of the experts on the panel, who has previously worked for Juul Labs and BAT in senior scientific and clinical roles.
“The development of a harm reduction label may help smokers to understand the reduced risk potential of vaping and encourage switching, in addition to reassuring vapers regarding the quality of the products they use and allowing them to differentiate between different products.
“Government statistics last year showed that the proportion of smokers in the U.K. was at its lowest level since records begun, a decline which was attributed largely to the major role played by vapes.
“However, the findings of this study, highlight a significant trust gap amongst adult smokers and it’s crucial for the vaping industry, government, regulators and healthcare professionals to come together to bridge it and support smokers on their quitting journey.
“It’s clear that open and transparent communication is essential in this process and to supporting the government’s ambitions for the country to go smokefree.”
E-cigarette maker Logic filed papers in court on May 9 that challenge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s marketing denial orders (MDO) that it issued against two brands: Logic Pro Menthol E-Liquid Package and Logic Power Menthol E-Liquid Package, reports Bloomberg Law.
Logic called the FDA’s MDOs “arbitrary and capricious.”
The 3rd Circuit Court entered a stay on the FDA’s MDOs in December 2022. The MDOs were the FDA’s first-ever MDOs directed at menthol e-cigarette products.
The Malaysian Substance Abuse Council (Masac) has recommended that only locally made vape liquids in sealed glass bottles be allowed for sale in the country, reports The Star. Using glass bottles will minimize the risk of undesirable substances being added, according to Masac’s secretary-general Raja Azizan Suhaimi.
A joint study by Masac, the Asian Center for Research on Drug Abuse and Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia found that teenage girls are increasingly using vape liquids laced with psilocybin, a psychoactive compound found in fungi such as “magic mushrooms.”
Raja Azizan suggested that the age limit for vaping should be raised from 18 to 21 to minimize the abuse of vape liquids, which may contain drugs. So far, only 10 manufacturers producing liquid nicotine are registered with the Customs Department, despite the registration deadline ending on April 30, 2023.
Masac also suspects that the three 13-year-old girls who were allegedly gang-raped by four teenagers in Kota Kinabalu on April 26, 2023, may have been given a vape liquid laced with psilocybin. The Malaysian government attempted to regulate the use of vapes among youth in October 2022 through the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill, but it was referred to a Special Parliamentary Select Committee for refinement.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim revealed during the revised Budget 2023 in February that vape liquids containing nicotine are still illegally sold in the country with estimated sales of MYR2 billion.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Zaliha Mustafa has stated that the Generational Endgame Bill—a piece of legislation that aims to gradually raise the smoking age until it covers the entire population—will be expedited and retabled.
The Ministry of Health in Vietnam has called for stricter control of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products that are not licensed in the country, reports VnExpress International.
In a recent document addressed to various government ministries and committees, the ministry asked for increased communication about the dangers of such products and for stronger measures to be taken against their purchase, sale, and trading.
Despite not being allowed in Vietnam, these products are becoming increasingly popular and are widely available on the internet. According to statistics from the World Health Organization, a growing number of Vietnamese students are using e-cigarettes, with 2.6 percent of those aged 15-17 vaping in 2019, and a 2022 survey revealing that 3.5 percent of those aged 13-15 use e-cigarettes.
There have been reports of students being poisoned by nicotine and liquids used in these products. The ministry also highlighted the risk of these products leading to social problems and addiction-related crime.
End Cigarette Smoke Thailand (ECST) is urging Thailand to legalize vaping, citing the U.K. progressive approach to e-cigarettes as an example, reports Thaiger.
In Thailand, the sale and use of e-cigarettes are illegal, creating an unregulated black market and increased access for minors, according to ECST.
“E-cigarettes are legal in England, allowing its government to impose measures and effectively enforce the regulations to protect minors,” said Asa Saligupta, a representative of the ECST and the Facebook page “What are e-cigarettes?” “The U.K. government is set to allow £45 million [$56.05 million] to reduce the country’s smoking rate and another £3 million for clamping down on shops selling vapes to youths under the age of 18.”
“The ban [in Thailand] is claimed to protect minors, but the sales and use of e-cigarettes are overt and commonplace. Children can easily access e-cigarettes through online channels without any regulations or inspections,” said Saligupta.
Following the U.K.’s example could be the solution to Thailand’s e-cigarette policy issues, according to Maris Karanyawat. “The subcommittee for studying factors affecting the health system and monitoring the enforcement of public health laws issued a report, which is based on a comprehensive study and opinions of all groups involved in the e-cigarette issue. The report suggests that Thailand should lift the ban on e-cigarettes so that they can be appropriately controlled through the 2017 Tobacco Products Control Act.”
In preparation for the upcoming tenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, scheduled to take place in Panama in November, Karanyawat said, “We hope that the Thai delegates will take into account the public health committee’s report, which recommends that a tobacco harm reduction approach be developed based on new scientific evidence which shows that e-cigarettes should be controlled differently from combustible cigarettes because they have different harmful effects.”
A proposal by the government of Quebec to ban nontobacco-flavored nicotine vaping products will have negative consequences for public health if enacted, according to the Canadian Vaping Association (CVA).
In addition to the flavor restrictions, the recently released draft legislation proposes a volume limit of 2 mL on prefilled devices and a limit of 30 mL on refill containers. Additionally, the regulations would restrict nicotine concentrations to 20 mg/mL and prohibit the use of any form, appearance or function that may be attractive to minors, both of which have already been regulated by the federal government.
If the draft rules are implemented, Quebec, with its population of 8.5 million, will become the largest Canadian province to prohibit flavors, according to media reports. Quebec is the country’s second-most populous province. According to the Alliance of Vape Shops in Quebec, there are over 400 independent vape shops in the province, employing over 2,200 people and generating more than $300 million in economic activity. The trade group predicts the shops will all close.
Quebec’s decision to ban flavors is a major win for tobacco companies, out-of-province vendors and contraband sellers.
In 2021, federal health agency Health Canada proposed a flavor ban that was scheduled to take effect in early 2022, but that plan seems to have been abandoned or postponed indefinitely without explanation. Health Canada’s updated vaping products regulations page makes no mention of the flavor restrictions.
The CVA says Quebec proposed its rules despite warnings by the industry about their negative impacts. Vaping is proven to be significantly less harmful than smoking, according to the CVA, which says there is substantial evidence from jurisdictions that have already implemented flavor bans that the public health outcome is negative, as many vapers will return to smoking and fewer smokers will switch to vaping.
“Quebec’s decision to ban flavors is a major win for tobacco companies, out-of-province vendors and contraband sellers,” said Darryl Tempest, government relations counsel to the CVA board, in a statement. “What Quebec has done is shift demand to tobacco owned products, retailers outside of Quebec and criminals. Quebec’s small businesses and domestic industry will be irreparably harmed in favor of multinational corporations,” said Tempest.
The High Court of Justice in London ruled April 17 that Philip Morris Products’ (PMP) patents protecting a tobacco-heating technology are valid, reports Law360. The ruling represents a defeat for BAT and its Nicoventures subsidiary, which had sought to revoke PMP’s patents.
While considering the patent valid, the court also said that BAT’s Glo heated-tobacco products did not infringe the patents, heading off an infringement counterclaim filed by PMP.
The April 17 ruling is the latest chapter in an ongoing intellectual property dispute between the tobacco giants.
PMP initially sued BAT and Nicoventures, claiming they infringed several of its tobacco-heating technology patents. This prompted BAT and Nicoventures to file counterclaims seeking to invalidate the patents.
The proceedings have now branched off into several different actions before the High Court.
In the current case, Nicoventures argued, among other things, that the PMP technology was obvious in light of a 1998 patent application referred to as “Pienemann,” which covers a “system for providing an inhalable aerosol.”
While Pienemann, like PMP’s technology, has multiple heating elements, Judge Michael Tappin said that a skilled team would consider the multiple heaters to “mimic” one heater. Pienemann also did not specify the inclusion of a thin-film heater as seen in the PMP patent, instead describing a “graphite loaded sheath,” according to the judgment.
Regarding the infringement claim, Tappin said that BAT’s Glo products did not infringe the patents because they did not include a method of allowing different parts of the heating system to be heated at different times.
Tobacco harm reduction initiatives should also cover e-waste management, say experts.
Contributed
E-waste is an emerging unintended environmental consequence of the revolution in electronic nicotine-delivery systems, threatening to undermine a technological innovation in public health. This conversation examines the intersection of regulatory policy, consumer behavior and the vaping products’ industry and hopes to map a sustainable path for the future.
In the discussion below, John Dunne from the U.K. Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) brings in the vaping industry perspective, Pieter Vorster brings expert views on global tobacco and nicotine industry transformation, and Sudhanshu Patwardhan (Sud), a nicotine expert and health-tech entrepreneur, proposes a broader definition and scope of tobacco harm reduction (THR).
Sudhanshu Patwardhan
Patwardhan: We know that in the U.K. and the European Union, where they are regulated, vapes, or e-cigarettes, are classed as waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Ideally, consumers in these countries should dispose of vapes at a household recycling center or at the shop where they bought the device. Manufacturers are also required to make recycling options available. Many consumers, however, are unaware that single-use vapes can or should be recycled. Incorrect disposal of these items can potentially release plastic, electronic and hazardous chemical waste into the environment and represent a fire hazard. How big is this issue currently? Does the industry have numbers contrasting sales to recycling?
Dunne: In the U.K., around 459 million e-cigarettes of all kinds are purchased each year, of which 168 million, or 37 percent, are single-use vapes. Approximately 43 percent of all vapes purchased are recycled, although this number is likely much lower for single-use (“disposable”) products:
Twenty-three percent of e-cigarettes are recycled in-store when consumers buy a new one.
Twenty percent are recycled at a local authority recycling center.
On the face of it, the 43 percent recycled figure for e-cigarettes compares favorably with the 31.2 percent of waste electrical and electronic equipment in the U.K. that was recycled or reused in the U.K. in 2021. However, vaping products’ relatively short lifespan means more waste is generated.
Patwardhan: Good to get that broader electronic products-based perspective and the product use life cycle nuance with regards to e-cigarettes. Obviously, there is a still a gap between current practices by consumers versus what would make e-cigarettes environmentally sustainable in the long run. Pieter, do you think there are any good examples of industry players showing some leadership in this?
Vorster: All three tobacco companies that sell single-use vaping products in the U.K.—BAT (Vuse Bar), Imperial (Blu bar) and PMI (VEEBA), for example—advise consumers not to put them in household waste and offer free returns services on their websites. This information is displayed on the webpages where these items are sold. Consumers who don’t buy these products online need to read the package insert. They are advised that the product should not be placed in household waste but collected separately for recovery and recycling. The package insert also directs users to the manufacturer’s website for details of its recycling program. Whether consumers ever read these inserts is open to debate!
Independent U.K. brands are not far behind either; Riot Bar and Blo Bar have also introduced comprehensive recycling schemes. Blo also offers consumers one free Blo Bar for every 10 disposable vapes of any brand sent to them for recycling. Most online retailers in the U.K. offer disposal and recycling advice, and VPZ, the U.K.’s largest vaping retailer, has announced that it is introducing a comprehensive return and recycling program in its stores before the end of March.
Patwardhan: It sounds like manufacturers are, in theory, offering the recycling option to consumers. Do we know if consumers know that these options exist? Perhaps there is an education piece that needs to be carried out by key actors in the supply chain, including manufacturers, as well as by the broader regulatory agencies? Do the regulators need to intervene, or does the industry need to act? Or both, and others?
John Dunne
Dunne: Recycling vapes is not straightforward and needs collaboration between adult vapers, retailers, manufacturers, regulators and companies in the waste management sector, which are involved in the current Producer Compliance Schemes under the WEEE regulations. We are liaising with DEFRA [U.K. Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs] and the Office for Product Safety and Standards and calling upon our members and the wider industry to innovate products that are easier to recycle.
Patwardhan: Talking about multi-stakeholder initiatives, we are on the cusp of another VApril, an annual British feature in April to showcase vaping as a means to stop smoking. As we have seen with a series of successive publications from U.K. health and related authorities and charities—e.g., the 2016 Royal College of Physicians’ Nicotine Without Smoke report—e-cigarettes/vapes are a potential force for good by helping smokers quit smoking. The THR creds of e-cigarettes in the context of current adult smokers are not in doubt. However, this emerging narrative on environmental harms from disposable vapes presents a unique challenge to those in public health and policy, does it not, Pieter?
Pieter Vorster
Vorster: Indeed, Sud. To date, opponents of tobacco harm reduction have often relied on questionable science that is unlikely to withstand rigorous evaluation, as evidenced by numerous retractions in recent years. On the other hand, the science underlying the potential environmental and health risks posed by the inappropriate disposal of reduced-risk products isn’t subject to the same constraints. Furthermore, the emotional appeal for the “environmental harms” narrative from these products has a much broader and vocal activist constituency—thus threatening to undermine the public health arguments of THR. In short, it represents a potentially potent weaponizable tool for those opposed to THR.
Patwardhan: I can see that the recent developments in Scotland, where an environmental activist highlighted the problem of vape littering, and separately, the decision of a large British supermarket chain to stop selling disposable vapes, signal a change in public perception and attitudes toward the product. It is as if an argument is being built in this narrative about disposables being harmful to the environment and are a lost cause as such, as well as the anecdotal observation that disposables are used by a much younger cohort, possibly those underage as well as those who have never smoked cigarettes before. If true, surely that is one issue to address through stronger regulations, especially with regards to preventing youth access and mandatory recycling requirements and refund schemes, right?
Dunne: Preventing the sale of vaping products to minors is one of the industry’s most fundamental challenges, and our members are united behind this goal. We have recently updated our “Preventing Underage Sales Guide” to give retailers all the information they need so they don’t inadvertently sell to someone under 18. However, we need the support of the government, regulators and enforcement authorities to ensure that unscrupulous retailers who knowingly sell to young people face the full force of the law. We believe that there is a need for increased fines for rogue traders, licensing of vape retailers and a national test purchase scheme. In fact, the UKVIA’s Youth Access Prevention Task Force will propose so to regulators this month. Regarding e-waste, the industry also recognizes its environmental responsibilities, and we are working with regulators, waste management experts, product manufacturers and retailers to find a workable solution.
Patwardhan: This is a most fascinating discussion where we find innovative 21st century nicotine products that have huge positive public health potential getting caught into an orthogonal field of great import in global public policy: sustainability and environment. In concert, responsible behavior by industry and retailers, better regulation and enforcement—and not prohibition—and consumer adoption of e-waste management solutions may well be the answer. In fact, we can go one step further and challenge all stakeholders—industry, regulators, public health and consumers—to embrace proactive e-waste management as another opportunity to reduce harms from a transforming tobacco and nicotine products’ landscape whilst maximizing the societal benefits from this shift in consumer behaviors.
The U.K. will embrace a New Zealand-style generational tobacco ban if the Labour Party wins the next elections, reports the Daily Mail, citing a BBC interview with Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Wes Streeting.
