Government Measures To ‘crackdown’ On Youth Vaping Do Not Go Far Enough Says Health Coalition Aotearoa

While the Government’s announcement to cease the sale
of disposable vapes and increase penalties for non-compliant
retailers is seen as a start to addressing youth vaping
issues, members from the Health Coalition Aotearoa (HCA)
Smokefree Expert Advisory Group say it is unlikely to have
the intended impact and does not go far enough.

“While
the coalition government is making a start on addressing
youth vaping, the proposed ban on disposables is likely to
have little impact,” University of Auckland Research Fellow
and HCA Expert Advisory Group member Dr Lucy Hardie said.
“Disposable vapes are popular among young people because
they are cheap but also because they typically contain high
levels of nicotine, are easy to use, and come in a range of
appealing flavours and stylish colours.”

Dr Hardie
also believes that vape companies will continue to adapt
their products to fit within regulation changes as has been
seen with the recent requirement to reduce nicotine
levels.

“The previous government introduced
regulations a matter of months ago, reducing the permitted
nicotine levels in disposable vapes. In response, however a
popular vape brand recently launched a new reusable vape
product designed in a shape that aligns with youth-oriented
single-use vapes and that includes the highest permitted
nicotine levels, a range of colours and flavours and at a
low price of just $9.99, making it affordable for young
people,” she said.

HCA wants to see the Government
significantly increase resources to enforce the monitoring
of retailers to ensure their compliance with the new laws.
“I applaud the introduction of higher fines for retailers
who sell to minors, but only one prosecution of this sort
has been made since the vape laws of 2020 came into force.
This change would only be meaningful with active enforcement
and adequate resources to implement it,” said Dr
Hardie.

HCA co-chair Professor Boyd Swinburn is
disappointed that the Government’s announcement does not
address the election promise made by the National Party to
place a 600-outlet cap across the country. “These proposed
changes do not see a reduction in the number of stores
selling vapes which was an election promise by the National
Party,” said Swinburn. “We need to have a number of changes
made to the current legislation around vaping if we want to
make a lasting impact.”

Professor Janet Hoek from
Aspire Aotearoa and HCAs Smokefree Expert Advisory Group
welcomes the move to cease the sale of disposable vapes, but
believes the Government’s approach to helping people to quit
smoking and vaping is inconsistent. “We certainly need
measures to protect young people from vaping; however, we
desperately need measures that will help people quit
smoking. Sadly, the government has just repealed core
measures in our smokefree law that would have denicotinised
tobacco, making it non-addictive and much easier to quit,
made tobacco less available, and created a smokefree
generation,” she said.

“A logical approach would have
seen measures that decreased smoking prevalence introduced
as quickly as possible. The government could then have
introduced much stronger vaping regulation, for example, by
introducing a prescription model or a pharmacy only supply
model.”

Health Coalition Aotearoa is committed to the
reduction of harm and death from vaping and smoking and will
continue the fight. “Whilst we welcome measures to reduce
vaping with our youth, we believe far more can be done to
address both smoking and vaping in Aotearoa,” said Professor
Swinburn. “We will continue to fight for a Smokefree New
Zealand, as this can be a reality for the current and future
generations.”

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