FEATURE
GOVERNMENT CONSIDERS MAJOR TRPR SHAKE-UP
The Department of Health and Social Care has launched a public consultation into the country ’ s vaping regulations
Words : Gordon Stribling
The laws governing the manufacture and sale of vape products in the EU have been controversial since the beginning . To vape sceptics , as nicotine products that loosely simulate smoking , they should have been treated much like cigarettes . But to vape advocates , the TPD was too strict , with provisions that could deter smokers from switching . But as a so-called youth vaping epidemic unfolded in the US , people on both sides now agree that the UK ’ s interpretation of the TPD , the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations ( TRPR ) got the balance about right … yet there is always room for improvement . Now , with Brexit finally behind us , the British government is drawing up a new Tobacco Control Plan and has launched a consultation to get the public ’ s view on the past five years of the TRPR with a view to drawing up a new framework . UK Vaping Industry Association ( UKVIA ) director-general , John Dunne , welcomed the consultation announcement . Dunne stressed the key role vaping plays in public health and helping the government meet its smoke-free 2013 goal . He said : “ As an industry , the vaping community has done much to provide vital information and alternatives to smokers for many years , but there is only so much we can do in the confines of current EU regulations . “ With the support of all stakeholders , including Government and regulators , the potential improvements to public health can increase tremendously .” The consultation document suggests that the government is committed to developing a framework that encourages smokers to switch to e-cigarettes which are ‘ far less harmful to health than smoking , and can help people stop smoking ,’
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