The new regulations reduce visibility and ban disposables but will be ineffectual in addressing our atrocious vaping rates. 

Why?

1. non-disposable vapes are already popular and readily available at all outlets, including online and near schools,
2. clear statement of health risks is still not required,
3. advice and help to quit is negligible

What can we do about this?

State the reality loudly and clearly to MPs, and especially and directly via email to C.Luxon, W.Peters and D. Seymour. (eg See 1. below)

Also, send in a submission now about the Regulatory Standards Bill. This far-reaching Bill is designed to put economic interests above basic human welfare and health, and is extremely likely to include the vape industry. The submission deadline 1 pm Monday June 23 NZT. (See 2. 3. and 4. Below)

1.     A letter I was pleased to have published in the New Zealand Herald last week was an edited version of the following:

' Although some visibility is to be reduced and disposables banned, all other vape products will remain as available as they have been, including online, non-disposables are already popular and highly accessible at all outlets, there will be no requirement to state clearly the health risks other than addiction to nicotine, and government advice and assistance to quit, on which there should be a primary focus l, especially for youth, will remain negligible. This must change. This fundamentally differs from most first world countries practice, including Australia and the US, although Trump is promising to undermine this and be more like us. Our weak regulation, including the new changes, is against WHO strong recommendation to ban or tightly control the product. Evidence emerging about respiratory pathology seen in regular vapers is disturbing but predictable given the composition of the typical inhaled heated e-liquid with chemicals at concentrations known to cause harm. For example in vapers a 2.3 times increase in COPD is found in those who never used tobacco, along with altered mucosal DNA and other changes typically seen in tobacco smokers. The government and corporations making money from sales in this context and without clear statement of risk is chilling and highly illegal. The NZ children and most adults who vape are ignorant of the risks but hooked on a product putting them at high risk of respiratory, cardiovascular and/or other system disease. In NZ the estimated 10% of year 10 students, and over 15% of 15-17 year olds regularly make us, along with the UK which also has a youth epidemic, outliers in the first world. '

2.      Regulatory Standards Bill - New Zealand Parliament  https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/make-a-submission/document/54SCFIN_SCF_E22299B3-B67B-4F74-023D-08DD9688D2C5/regulatory-standards-bill

3.      One useful resource for making a submission:https://www.phcc.org.nz/briefing/regulatory-standards-bill-threatens-public-interest-public-health-and-maori-rights

4.      Major points for rejecting the Bill : It precludes a fundamental duty of care of a government to its people. Under the proposed Bill the very basic principles required to maintain decent standards of health and welfare can be ignored should they conflict with certain economic interests. (The inclusion of commercial entities being able to claim a refund should public health requirements result in a cost to them is extraordinary and absurd.)

(Note – if you use this for writing your own submission put in your own words, as if very similar it may be dismissed as not ‘real'.)

The photo above is of a shop window clearly advertising vapes in Wellington CBD even though the new regulations were supposed to ban such advertising.