- By Tiffanie Turnbull
- BBC News, Sydney
May 2, 2023 at 01:26 CET
Updated 1 hour ago
Image source, Getty Images
Recreational vaping is being banned in Australia as part of a major crackdown amid what experts are calling an “epidemic”.
It also introduces minimum quality standards and restricts the sale of vapes to pharmacies.
Nicotine vapes already require a prescription in Australia, but the industry is poorly regulated and a black market thrives.
Health Minister Mark Butler says the products are creating a new generation of nicotine addicts in Australia.
Vapes, also known as e-cigarettes, heat a liquid — usually containing nicotine — and turn it into a vapor that the user inhales. They are widely viewed as a product to help smokers quit smoking.
But in Australia, the popularity of vapes as a recreational product has exploded, particularly among urban youngsters.
“Just like they did with smoking… ‘Big Tobacco’ took another addictive product, wrapped it in shiny packaging and added sweet flavors to create a new generation of nicotine addicts,” Mr Butler said in a speech, in which reforms were announced on Tuesday.
Vapes are considered safer than regular cigarettes as they contain no harmful tobacco – the UK government is even giving them away for free to some smokers as part of its ‘Swap to Stop’ scheme.
However, health experts caution that vapes are not risk-free – they can often contain chemicals – and the long-term effects of their use are not yet clear.
The Australian government argues that they pose a public health threat and disproportionately affect young people, many of whom have not smoked before.
Research suggests that one in six Australians aged 14 to 17 has vaped and one in four people aged 18 to 24.
“Only 1 in 70 people my age has vaped,” said Mr Butler, who is 52.
He said the products are deliberately aimed at children and are readily available “alongside lollipops and candy bars” in retail outlets.
He added that vaping has become the “number one behavior problem” in high schools. Some have started installing vape detectors in bathrooms, Australian media reported.
Reforms tighten already strict rules
Australia already has some of the toughest anti-smoking laws in the world. Mr Butler on Tuesday compared new e-cigarette reforms to those used to reduce cigarette smoking in Australia to one of the lowest levels among advanced countries.
The reforms include a ban on all single-use vapes and a crackdown on the import of non-prescription products.
The vapor products that remain legal require scripts and must have drug-like packaging. It also introduces restrictions on flavors, colors, nicotine concentrations and other ingredients.
“No more bubblegum flavors, pink unicorns, or e-cigarettes disguised as highlighters for kids to hide in their pencil cases,” Butler said.
But he said the government will also make it easier for people to get a prescription for a “legitimate therapeutic use.”
A timeline for implementation will be announced at a later date.
A handful of other countries, such as Singapore and Thailand, have also banned vaping, and Australia’s medicines regulator – the Therapeutic Goods Administration – has recommended reform.
The Cancer Council said the changes could “reverse the vape epidemic and prevent history from repeating itself for a new generation of Australians”.
But some politicians, industry groups and healthcare professionals say Australia should relax its laws.
National Party leader David Littleproud has previously argued that the country should emulate New Zealand’s approach and regulate nicotine vaporizers in a similar way to cigarettes. Others have raised concerns that tighter restrictions could lead more people to turn to the unregulated illicit market.