Very popular with young people, but criticized by health professionals, disposable electronic cigarettes will soon be banned in the United Kingdom, where Rishi Sunak’s government has made the fight against smoking one of its major objectives.
“Kids shouldn’t vape and we don’t want them to become addicted […] This is why we are going to ban disposable e-cigarettes,” the Conservative Prime Minister announced Monday morning while visiting a school in the north-east of England.
“We do not yet know the health consequences of vaping, and it is therefore normal that we take strong measures to eradicate this phenomenon,” he added.
Flavored like pineapple, strawberry or other appetizing fruits and sold in small colorful tubes, the puffs are experiencing increasing success among adolescents who indulge in vape.
According to official figures, among young people aged 11 to 17 who vape in the UK, the proportion of those using disposable e-cigarettes has increased nine-fold in two years.
The government “wants to help children avoid being catastrophically lured into a nicotine addiction, to which vaping is often a gateway,” defended Health Minister Victoria Atkins on the BBC.
She specified that this ban should take place at the beginning of next year.
“Courageous action has always been needed to curb vaping among young people and the ban on disposable products is a significant step in the right direction,” said Dr Mike McKean, vice-president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health. .
The United Kingdom still considers electronic cigarettes useful to help quit smoking, and in 2021 its authorities opened the way to possible medical prescriptions for such devices, sparking criticism from certain scientists.
But the government is concerned about the popularity of vaping devices among young people and thus joins other countries which have taken measures against these disposable devices.
In France, the National Assembly adopted a bill at the end of 2023 aimed at banning them. It must still be examined by the Senate, and above all receive clearance from the European Commission.
Elsewhere in Europe, Germany, Belgium and Ireland have also started their ban.
For its part, Australia has also banned the importation of disposable e-cigarettes since January 1.
For the World Health Organization (WHO), electronic cigarettes in general are a “harmful” product and the studies carried out to evaluate their value as a tool for quitting smoking “are not conclusive”.
Tobacco-free countries
Monday morning, the announcement sent manufacturers of disposable electronic cigarettes into a tailspin on the London Stock Exchange: Chill Brands Group fell by some 22% by mid-morning, while its competitor Supreme lost more than 7%.
In addition to the ban on disposable e-cigarettes, London also announced on Monday a tightening of regulations to reduce the number of flavors authorized for classic electronic cigarettes, make their packaging less attractive and regulate the way in which these products are presented in stores in order to that they are less visible to young people.
These measures are part of a broader plan to combat smoking announced last fall by Rishi Sunak.
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the UK and causes around one in four cancer deaths, according to the government.
Mr. Sunak had thus announced that he wanted to extend the ban on the sale of cigarettes so that the United Kingdom gradually becomes a tobacco-free country.
Currently, the legal age to buy cigarettes in England and Wales is 18 and the government wants to raise this legal age by one year each year.
Which means that anyone born after 2009 will no longer be able to legally buy cigarettes during their lifetime.