Leaked Documents Say EU Vape Ban Is Possible
Is there an EU vape ban plan looming on the horizon?
According to leaked European Union documents there very well might be – shocking if true.
Whilst there would not be an outright ban of all things vape planned, flavours would be banned and vaping would become ‘illegal‘ in public.
It would be a slippery slope for sure, and once one set of anti-vape legislation is brought into law – who knows where those unelected mandarins from Europe would go next – mission creep springs to mind…
The EU vape ban plan is part of the grand Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan – something I wrote about back in September last year.
In that article I showed how European vape advocacy groups were concerned the scheme did NOT include vaping and other safer nicotine products.
They – it now seems rightly – feared this was a lost opportunity by the European Union – and this leaked document seems to confirm their fears.
The leaked documents shows the EU is considering:
- Extending taxation to “novel tobacco products”, including vaping
- Extending the coverage of the smoking bans indoor and outdoor to e-cigarettes
- Banning flavours
The Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan is due to be launched on February 3rd 2021 and World Vapers’ Alliance Director, Michael Landl says without vaping included in the plan, cancer cannot possibly be eradicated in Europe:
Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan is a historic chance to beat cancer and the Commission is about to botch it.
Vaping is not the same as smoking and treating the two as the same is a mistake that could prevent thousands of smokers from quitting.
What we have seen in the leaked plan is very concerning and I hope that the version announced will correct this flawed approach.
We should be led by science and not by ideology on this issue.
…Smokers MUST Be Allowed To Switch…
Europe’s Beating Cancer plan must acknowledge vaping is not smoking, and actively encourage smokers who are not willing or not able to quit to switch to e-cigarettes.
Otherwise, the goal of eradicating cancer in Europe cannot be achieved.
I truly hope that what the Commission publishes on vaping will look very different to what we see in this leaked document or the future for vaping in Europe looks pretty bleak.
If this is what we get from the Commission, then I hope we see Members of the European Parliament push back against these misguided proposals.
Absolutely.
The World Vaper’s Alliance has been running it’s own plan for the past 6 months and the Back Vaping. Beat Cancer places vaping front and centre in the battle against the killer disease.
Campaign organizers want vapers, smokers and those concerned about the EU’s rocketing cancer levels to sign a petition and say:
We call on Members of the European Parliament and national European Governments to support the inclusion of vaping in Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan.
Right now, we are at a critical point in Europe.
More than ever before, it is vital that efforts to reduce the harm of smoking, such as switching to vaping, are included in Europe’s plan to tackle cancer.
I suggest every single vaper, smoker or anyone touched by cancer within the EU, signs up and helps fight the EU vape ban plan – before it’s too late.
So do you think of any future EU vape ban plan?
Let me know in the comments below.
Netherlands Flavour Ban Pushed Back
Vaper power means the proposed Netherlands flavour ban has been pushed back giving advocacy groups more time to convince the Government it’s the wrong move.
The World Vapers Alliance is once again the spearhead for the push back and says a public consultation saw a record breaking number of responses.
Of the 757 submissions a whopping 746 opposed the ban coming out at 98.54% of responders.
As I reported, last year, the original consultation was due to end on January 19th 2021, but due to the overwhelming numbers of people now wishing to respond, the deadline has been pushed back until February 3rd this year.
World Vapers’ Alliance Director Michael Landl said:
I am delighted to see common sense and logic prevail.
98% of submissions against the flavour ban are a crystal clear message for the government: it is time to scrap this terrible idea and move on.
Out of respect for citizens and on the basis of scientific evidence, dropping the flavour ban is the only possible way forward.
Anything else would be a disgrace.
The second extension of the consultation shows, on the one hand, that the whole process was flawed from the get go, and on the other hand that grassroots pressure from vapers can change policies.
This is encouraging, but the fight isn’t over. We need to keep the pressure up to make sure lawmakers won’t push the ban through at a later stage
Indeed – vapers do indeed vote and given the sheer amount of numbers when we band together, we CAN make a BIG difference.
Vapers, smokers or anyone with an opinion on the proposed flavour ban in the Netherlands can submit their response at the link below:
Is the Clock Ticking On TikTok?
TikTok is the latest social media platform being targeted by the anti-vape brigade with calls that all mentions of vaping be removed.
According to some reports, unscrupulous vape companies are hiding vape gear inside everyday items such as fluffy slippers when posted to teenagers to keep the product away from the prying eyes of parents…
No idea if that’s true – it’s on the internet so who knows!
And neither am I a fountain of knowledge on TikTok – I’m a little too old for a bunch of no name wannabes making dicks of themselves for likes…or whatever it is they do on there…
An article in Yahoo News [yeah I know – hardly a bastion of hard hitting journalism] reckons millions of kids are exposed to vaping via TikTok every single day.
It says hashtags such as #JUUL and disposable brand #PuffBar shows youngsters ‘performing‘ in colourful videos with ‘pop music‘ blaring in the background promoting the vape products.
Writer Sarah Perez says on Tech Crunch:
Knowing that their target market is often teenage vapers, many videos depicted how the seller could package the vape inside another product or hide it in the stuffing so parents wouldn’t find out.
We saw videos of vapes packaged underneath candy, inside makeup bags, inside socks, underneath other lager products, and more.
No idea if this is the case – but if it has even the remotest hint of truth about it – it’s the last thing the vaping industry needs.
Subterfuge should NOT be encouraged and retailers engaging in this practice should put a stop to it immediately.
As vapers, we have enough on our plates already without this kind of stupid shit.
So…what’s this TikTok all about then?
Let me know in the comments below – I am after all, old and out of touch with what the kids are getting down with these days…
E-liquid Flavours Are CRUCIAL To Stop Smoking
Back to the EU again and a timely survey shows that 80% of European vapers have now quit smoking for good.
And if those idiotic politicians didn’t need anymore proof – 65% of vapers say they did it by using flavoured e-liquids – and not just tobacco or menthol flavours either!
3,300 + vapers were surveyed by the Independent European Vape Alliance (IEVA), and also shows vapers, and I guess smokers and the wider pubic, are becoming more aware of the less harmful benefits of switching to vaping.
86% of those surveyed said they believed e-cigarettes are less harmful than lit tobacco, with only 2% thinking they are as or more harmful – good news indeed.
But it was the importance of e-liquid flavors that catches the eye, the results are proof positive just how crucial they are with the survey stating:
40 percent of them use fruit flavored liquids and 25 percent prefer other sweet flavors.
A good third of vapers select tobacco-flavored liquids (35 percent).
IEVA asked the participants how they would react if all liquid flavors except tobacco flavors were banned.
Result: Only 20 percent of vapers would switch to tobacco flavors.
Negative effects of a flavor ban: 31 percent stated that they would buy other liquid flavors on the black market. 9 percent would even start smoking again.
It’s what most of us have been saying for bloody years – banning all flavoured e-liquids will mean less vapers and the consequences will/would be dire.
Dustin Dahlmann, President of IEVA agrees adding:
Our survey confirms previous research that e-cigarette flavors are crucial for adult smokers.
A flavor ban must be avoided at all costs, because it would lead many vapers to buy unregulated products on the black market or to start smoking again.
And this would endanger the great opportunity that many more smokers will stop smoking with the help of the e-cigarette.
Yet still politicians and governments around the world want to ban vaping and flavours…
As to why…answers in the comments below…
—————————–
More vaping news on Sunday!
