EVENTS
STILL
FIGHTING FOR
INDEPENDENCE
The IBVTA – vaping’s strongest advocacy group in the
political sphere, make their presence known at the Vaper
Expo, and fi ll us in on every front
In times of shared fun, celebration and new opportunities
afforded to us by shows like the Vaper Expo, it’s important to
never forget the men and women who tirelessly fi ght on the
political and regulatory frontier for vaping’s right to exist and
promote itself in this way.
Chief Executive Richard Hyslop represented the Independent
British Vape Trade Association for the second time at the
Expo. The IBVTA’s stand was brimming with informative
literature and excellent news on the year they have had.
When we last checked in with the IBVTA, Richard had just
announced the organisation’s ambitious plans to essentially
“write the bible” for trading standards among the UK’s
vape businesses. Richard was able to update us on all the
progress made since May.
“We’ve been continuing that work. The Department of Health
and the MHRA are looking at it right now. We’ve just formed
a primary authority relationship with Kent Trading Standards
and we’ll be sending the fi nal version of the document to
them for approval and if it passes, it will become assured
guidance that will go out across the UK. So hopefully we’ll
see a uniform interpretation of the TRPR covering every
trading standards area in the country. Plus, it gives our
own members and the wider independent vape industry
confi dence into what the regulations actually are so that
when Trading Standards come into their premises, they’ll
have a document that can stand out. Plus, when buying
products themselves from distributors and suppliers, they’ll
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also know what they should be looking out for in terms of
what compliant packaging should look like etc. so it’ll all be
included in one place.”
Consultation on changes to advertising standards
announced by the ASA
In case you missed it, September 14 2017 saw an
announcement from CAP and BCAP via the ASA website
that they were “consulting on changes to their Codes to
remove the current prohibition on health claims being
made for e-cigarettes.” The IBVTA responded swiftly and
thoroughly, laying out the case for relaxing such prohibitions.
Richard was delighted with the announcement.
“We think it’s a hugely positive move. We’re really interested
in how advertising standards treat vaping. For the longest
time, our members were able to advertise, but they couldn’t
tell people what the product they were advertising was for.
Now our members will soon be able to tell people what
vaping is for, but they won’t be able to advertise, it’s such a
strange situation to be in. Now we’re moving towards a place
where our members – and the wider industry – will be able
to make comparative health claims about their products. It’s
a very positive move. However, they’ll still be restricted in
how they can display and use that information. It’s a very
welcome step forward, but the key thing is to get to a stage
where the vaping industry can advertise and explain to
consumers, to smokers, to existing vapers, the benefi ts of
e-cigarette use and why such demographics should choose
their products over someone else’s. The industry should be