Tobacco Control 2022 Review – Unique Opportunity – Have Your Say!
As mentioned in my news article from 11th February a new review has been tabled by the UK Government in its “Levelling Up” campaign to review the current Tobacco Control situation.
Head of the Tobacco Control review is Javed Khan OBE who is the former head of the charity Barnardos.
I am so far really happy to report he is taking this review seriously and is even reaching out to people on Social Media to collect their opinions…
Below is a Twitter thread he started – if you see it make sure to reply and help shape the future tobacco control policies – you can also click on the tweet below!
CALL OUT: I want to hear your views and what we can do to support current smokers to quit, and to stop people taking up smoking. Use the hashtag #TobaccoIndependentReview. Email: TobaccoIndependentReview@dhsc.gov.uk Thread 1/6
— Javed Khan OBE (@JavedKhanCEO) February 18, 2022
I like how he is asking all the right questions and even sharing tweets from other Harm Reduction accounts such as New Nicotine Alliance (NNAlliance), ASH and even his main man Sajid Javid (Secretary of State for Health and Social Care).
If you are on Twitter please give him a follow at JavedKhanCEO and get involved – it can only be a good thing surely!
If you are not on Twitter his email address is shown in the first Tweet so again please let him know your thoughts – I will be!
I like this guy already – please Javed look after us Vapers, Smokers ready to quit and Ex-smokers!!
To read the press release regarding the “Levelling Up” reviews visit the Gov.UK Website – Government Launches Landmark Reviews To Tackle Health Disparities.
Europe Wising Up To Vaping…
Well well well – I know we are not strictly in the EU now but it is still lovely to see that the EU Parliament has voted to adopt “Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan“.
The report was compiled by the Special Committee on Beating Cancer (BECA) and was adopted by an overwhelming majority of 652 in favour, 15 against and 27 abstentions.
The BECA was set up in September 2020 and includes 63 MEPs, 33 Full Members and 30 Substitutes.
Included in this group is Deirdre Clune – representing the Fine Gael Party (Ireland) but sadly no UK representation – which is kind of expected really.
The vote took place on 16th February 2022 and it appears that Vaping has been highlighted as a potential stop smoking tool at last!
The report includes this…
“Electronic cigarettes could allow some smokers to progressively quit smoking”
The report also recommends risk evaluations to be performed to compare nicotine products to smoking.
Michael Landl of the World Vapers Alliance (WVA) commented the following on the news…
“Finally, an EU institution acknowledges that vaping helps smokers to quit. That is a significant step forward in our fight to save lives by reducing the harms caused by smoking. It shows the power of the voice of individual consumers coming together. Now it is the Commission’s turn to no longer ignore science and the experience of millions of consumers.”
The above quote was taken from the World Vapers Alliance Website – Press Release.
Sadly at present Flavour bans have not been ruled out – but it is a start.
ETHRA reported this development on their website – EU Recognises Tobacco Harm Reduction With The BECA Report.
So still a long way to go but great to see EU Vapers are being considered and listened to – and hopefully this will pave the way to Vaping being more accepted outside of the UK!
Cash Up For Grabs… But There Is A Catch…
Recently (January 2022) Charles A Gardner PHD who is the General Secretariat of INNCO (International Network of Nicotine Consumer Organisations) and all round vape advocate started a Twitter campaign.
The cash offer started at $100…
As time went by other followers added to the cash pledge which now stands at $2,652.20 for anyone who can provide proof of a single verified human death caused by nicotine vaping in the past 20 years.
CASH OFFER
Dozens of adult ex-smokers who vape nicotine pledge to you, or the charity of your choice, $2,652.20.
To win, provide proof of one verified human death ever caused by inhaling legal nicotine vapor in the past 20 years of use by (currently) 68 million of us worldwide. pic.twitter.com/aUbnD83T2t
— Charles A. Gardner, PhD (@ChaunceyGardner) February 12, 2022
As the pot has increased it is becoming more obviously nobody so far has been able to prove any death from vaping!
September 2021 Cochrane Review Findings
CEBM (The Centre For Evidence Based Medicine) has published an updated set of briefing documents (February 2022) titled “Can Electronic Cigarettes (EC) help people to stop Smoking and are they safe to use for this purpose?”
The documents are in PDF format and are downloaded from the CEBM Website – Electronic Cigarettes for Smoking Cessation – Cochrane Living Systematic Review.
The findings are from the Cochrane Review in September 2021 and are also backed by Cancer Research UK, University of Oxford, NIHR (National Institute for Health Research) and Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences.
There are 2 documents to download – the “Plain Language Briefing” and the “Briefing for healthcare professionals and policy makers”.
Just to give a quick summary here are the key findings from the Healthcare professional and policy makers briefing…
The plain language briefing shares the following key findings…
Also great to see is this summary of Health impacts from vaping…
Of course these documents have a lot more data including results and methods used in the review so grab a cuppa, get comfy and download them!
Scotland Against Vape Display Ban
The SGF (Scottish Grocers Federation) has called plans by the Scottish Government to ban Vaping Product Displays – “Bad News”…
The federation represents convenience store owners and the head of SGF Public Affairs Dr John Lee says…
“The evidence base presented in the consultation document simply does not justify the measures proposed.”
“It clearly sets out the benefits of using vaping products to stop smoking. That it then makes the contradictory suggestion that displays of them should be banned is somewhat bewildering.
“The trouble is that banning the in-store promotion of vaping products will inevitably stall the drive to make Scotland smoke-free by 2034.
“This is clearly bad news for Scotland’s public health.”
Polling carried out by SGF last year found that Scots think access to e-cigarettes should not be further restricted and that people get a lot of information from visiting local stores and seeing the products available to them.
In its “Vape To Quit” document – the SGF highlights…
SGF and its member stores want to help customers transition away from cigarettes towards e-cigarettes, as the first step on their journey to quitting altogether and achieving the Scottish Government’s ambition to make the nation smoke-free.
More than one-in-seven people in Scotland smoke. More than half of them say they want to quit. Half the smokers. Half the hospital admissions. Half the deaths.
Only seven per cent of Scots use Nicotine Vaping Products (NVPs), or e-cigarettes, which are recognised as the most successful cessation tool, with Public Health England estimating that people who use vaping to quit have a success rate of up to 74%. SGF can highlight their responsible use.
More details on the SGF Website – Government Proposals Will Stop Smokers From Quitting.
Free / Discounted E-cigs For Quitters – A Roundup Of What’s Available So Far…
I am loving the fact that some local stop smoking services are already offering free / discounted vape kits to assist those who want to quit smoking.
At some point everyone may have access to vapes on the NHS but in the meantime these local services are going above and beyond to help people quit.
I often see these advertised on Twitter / Online and so far have found the following…
Smokefree Norfolk with Norfolk County Council…
and a vape company have so far given out 742 vouchers for e-cigarettes and equipment worth £20. Fill in the form here to be considered for the Vape Scheme – Smokefree Norfolk Contact Us.
The Angel Centre – Salford
get a free Renova/Vaporesso Zero kit by contacting them by email hello@socialadventures.org.uk or telephone 0161 710 1075.
A&E Vape Kits
Emergency (A&E) departments at the following hospitals –
- Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital,
- The Royal London Hospital,
- Homerton University Hospital in London,
- Leicester Royal Infirmary,
- Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
are offering smokers e-cigarette starter packs. This trial is funded by the Norwich Clinical Trials Unit at the University Of East Anglia (UEA).
They say…
The study will run over 30 months across five hospitals in England and Scotland
Smokers who agree to take part will be randomly assigned to receive either smoking advice during their emergency department wait, an e-cigarette starter pack and referral to local stop smoking services, or just written information about locally available stop smoking services.
More details can be found here – NIHR Vape Kits To Help Smokers Quit.
SmokeFree Hampshire
This service offers support and even a voucher scheme to get you started.
There are a lot of participating vape stores to redeem your voucher – but the voucher value is not specified.
But if you are in the area it might be worth checking out the service to see if it can help you! Visit the SmokeFree Hampshire website.
Hackney Stop Smoking Service
The Hackney Stop Smoking Service has a partnership with 5 local vape stores to provide a discount on a starter kit when you access their services.
It is only 20% but still helpful to get you started.
For more details visit the Smokefree City and Hackney Website.
Public Health Northamptonshire
As part of their 12 week programme you can receive telephone support, Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) or a Free E-cigarette Starter kit and 12 weeks supply of e-liquid.
To refer yourself or for more details visit the Northamptonshire Health Service Website.
Kits For Homeless Smokers
A trail led by UCL (University College London) and LSBU (London South Bank University) researchers will take place to see if vaping can help homeless smokers quit smoking.
The nationwide study will be conducted in 32 centres across five UK regions: Scotland, Wales, London, the South-East of England and the East of England.
Sixteen centres will be allocated to the e-cigarette group, while another 16 will be allocated to a usual care group. The full research trial will include 480 participants, with 240 in each group and 15 from each centre.
To access the service ask at your local homelessness support centre to see if they are part of the trial.
More details – UK Trial To Help Homeless People Quit Smoking With Vaping.
Tower Hamlets
Quit Right which serves the Tower Hamlets area is offering a 28 day supply of E-cigarettes and support to adult smokers who live, work or study in the area.
For more details visit the Quit Right Website.
Vapour Central Southend
Vapour Central have been commissioned by Southend Stop Smoking Service to provide support and advice to smokers who live or work in Southend.
As part of the service if you sign up to the 10 week support programme they are offering up to £20 worth of free e-liquid to help get you started.
For more details visit the Smokefree Southend website.
Quit Ready – Leicestershire & Rutland
Quit Ready welcomes smokers who want to switch to vaping by offering a free e-cigarette starter kit including liquids for the 12 week programme.
Plus you will have an adviser to support you during your transition.
For more details and to contact the service visit QuitReady – E-cigarettes and Vaping.
Any More To Add?
I will add any more services I find to future news pages and please let us know in the comments below if you know of a community or local service offering free / discounted kits.
Anyway after that heavy duty session of vape news – hope you all have a great week and see you here again next Friday!
