Vapouround magazine Issue 04 | Page 16

NEWS Vaping In Public ................... g enerally in the UK you can vape in public as, unlike for smoking, there is no specific law to say that you cannot. So if you are in a public space such as walking down the street then you can vape away to your heart’s content. However it is less straightforward when you are in a private building to which the public have access. In this case there is no law which automatically forbids you from vaping. So you could go to a pub, a cinema or shopping mall and smoke e-cigarettes without breaking any laws. That’s the good news but the bad news is that this does not mean that you will actually be allowed to do so. The owners or managers of property to which the public have access have the legal right to say what can and what cannot be done on their property (as long as they do not break existing laws in the process.) So a shopping mall in one town may allow vaping but a similar mall in the next town may not. Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio, a big fan of e-cigarettes, found this out for himself recently when he was allowed to vape at the Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles but not at the Oscars in Los Angeles. DiCaprio won his first Oscar for Best Actor for his role in The Revenant but the no-vaping rules even apply to Oscar winners. (However he was seen vaping when he hit the town after the ceremony was over.) This confusion about where you ca n vape has led social commentators to ask whether or not it is socially acceptable to vape indoors, regardless or not of whether it is banned by law. A recent article on Vogue’s website said it was a new etiquette question which has been highlighted by DiCaprio’s fondness for vaping in public places. It said: “The proper protocol regarding 16 ISSUE 04 VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE electronic smoking has been up for debate ever since the rise of e-cigarette use. “Before New York included e-cigarettes in its no-smoking ban (which prohibits use in bars, restaurants, offices, parks, and on beaches), rules on vaping varied from establishment to establishment. But does the public e-cigarette ban extend to private functions? ................... “The proper protocol regarding electronic smoking has been up for debate ever since the rise of e-cigarette use.” ................... “In the past few years, vaping has been making the rounds at many glamorous circuits: Katy Perry was seen sharing a vape pen with Orlando Bloom at this year’s Golden Globes after-party; Sarah Silverman showed off her liquid pot pen during the Emmy’s red-carpet procession in 2014; and, back when she was still dating Michelle Rodriguez, Cara Delevingne puffed out tiny vapor rings while watching a Knicks game.” The article argued that vaping was far less offensive than traditional smoking because the smell from exhaled vapour is generally quite pleasant and because it leaves no acrid smells on your clothing or hair. However Vogue’s Social Editor Chloe Malle criticised vapers for being ‘smug’ saying: “There’s a certain smugness to vaping. “I feel like people think, ‘I’m allowed to do this, don’t try to stop me’.” The article discussed whether vaping in public could be distracting to others or make non-vapers feel uncomfortable - both reasons why people may not choose to do it in public. Certainly many vapers do not like being sent to smoking areas if they want to vape in public and it is easy to see why. Given that many vapers have given up vaping, it does seem ironic at the very least to encourage them to share a space with smokers when they want to vape. For now, at least, it seems that there will remain confusion about whether in many public spaces vaping is permitted or not. Then, even where it is permitted, there is the dilemma of whether or not you should vape in public places.