Stopping the new nicotine economy in its tracks

Here is Action on Recreational Vaping Policy Brief and 6 recommendations to government.

Here and below is our press release

Summary Press Release

Should all vapes be treated like cigarettes?

Banning disposables won’t address the problem of recreational vaping

Vaping in the UK is only viewed in proportion to the immense harms of smoking.  The explosion of recreational vaping in non-smokers, particularly young adults, is being overlooked. The growth of recreational vaping in non-smokers is not accidental and needs separate consideration from the needs of smokers.

The government protests it is on the case already with recreational vaping when it urges  ‘if you don’t smoke don’t vape’. But a bit like ‘drink responsibly’ and ‘gamble aware’ if such trite phrases are not backed by robust policies, which from the proposed regulation it appears they will not be, they signify nothing.

The tar in cigarettes kills smokers, (8 million of them a year), but it is the addictive properties of nicotine which makes it so hard for them to stop. A vape market has been created by manufacturers and retailers which, once again, is being allowed to successfully package nicotine as a lifestyle product for recreational use, but with their own short and long term negative health effects, as yet unquantified.

The shadow of smoking deaths understandably looms large. Too large in our view. Vapes may have a place in helping people stop smoking, but the health of middle aged smokers should not be prioritised at the expense of that of young people. Vapes can be better targeted and made more effective for smokers, whilst also preventing the targeting of non-smokers. But current policies do not do enough to make that happen.

The government proposes to ban disposable vapes, restrict marketing to children and give free vapes to smokers. A ban only of disposables without addressing the multiple drivers of recreational usage and new product developments in refillables (which now resemble disposables in size, attractiveness and almost price), will leave the market wide open to the intentional addiction of non-smokers of all ages.

“We cannot let the market dictate the health of our young people” explained Action on Recreational Vaping Director Hilary Sutcliffe. “We must learn the lessons of smoking, social media, opioids, gambling, computer games and other products of ‘the addiction economy’.  This is not a simple task.  It requires an approach which reevaluates the drivers of vaping and delivers a multifaceted policy approach which stops vaping in its tracks, but supports those who want to quit smoking with the most appropriate incentives, and technologies."

See here our Policy Brief with 6 Recommendations for government on regulation, health, cessation and the involvement of young people and smokers in designing regulation.

Our recommendations are:

1. Change the scope of regulation to address recreational vaping in young adults – treat all vapes as cigarettes

2. More transparency, less capture – a more transparent approach to policy making and a less captured APPG.

3. Ensure health effects of vaping are updated and considered separately to smoking and to non-health related effects.

4. Stop saying vapes are 95% safer than cigarettes.

5. Change the NHS website which only recommends vapes be taken up by smokers. Provide support and material to help vapers quit with a focus on young people.

6. Involve young people, smokers, and citizens in the regulatory process to help head off the looming culture wars around vapes.