Parliament to regulate vaping, implement plain packaging for tobacco products

OTTAWA — The federal government has passed legislation that makes significant changes to tobacco laws by regulating vaping products and giving Health Canada the power to order plain packaging for cigarettes.

The sweeping changes will roll vaping products into many of the existing tobacco regulations. The bill, S-5 will regulate the manufacture, sale, labelling and promotion of e-cigarettes and vaping products. The legislation, which only needs royal assent to become law, prohibits the sale of vaping products to minors, restricts certain forms of advertising for these products and bans certain flavours. Large tobacco companies are opposed to these changes, because they will have to remove their brands from packages.