Tobacco giants back calls for public vaping
CONTROVERSIAL proposals to relax laws on e-cigarettes have been warmly welcomed by leading tobacco companies. Parliament’s science and technology committee published its finding into vaping yesterday, with its chairman saying e-cigarettes “could be a key weapon in the NHS’S stop-smoking arsenal”.
Users should be allowed to vape in public places such as offices and public transport, MPS recommended. Gemma Webb, general manager of British American Tobacco, said the report offered “an accurate and pragmatic snapshot of the current state of play of the e-cigarette market”.
“The committee’s recommendations set out a useful road map for the Government to continue its progressive regulatory approach to the category which will help more smokers, who would otherwise not quit, make the switch from traditional tobacco products,” she added.
Evidence submitted to MPS estimated vaping is 95pc less harmful than conventional cigarettes. This led members to conclude e-cigarettes are being “overlooked as a stop-smoking tool”.
A report issued by Public Health England earlier this year found 40pc of smokers have not tried an e-cigarette.
Grant O’connell, a corporate affairs manager for Imperial Brands’ e-cigarette subsidiary Fontem Ventures, said: “We’ve long argued that e-cigarettes are a less harmful alternative and that claims they were a ‘gateway’ to conventional smoking simply didn’t stand up to scrutiny.” Tobacco companies are faced with declining demand for traditional products in the West. To offset this they are racing to expand so-called next-generation products (NGPS).
A recent presentation by Imperial Brands placed vapour products one notch up from nicotine replacement products in terms of the level of toxicants. Heated tobacco products, which carry a heightened risk compared with e-cigarettes, are preferred by customers, tobacco companies have claimed.
A major concern weighing on global tobacco titans is the preponderance of smaller companies, such as American operator Juul, in the vaping market. But the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tilted the e-cigarette market in favour of the larger companies earlier this month by introducing product standardisation and addressing the use of e-cigarettes by younger people.
Meanwhile, debate continues over whether e-cigarettes and other NGPS constitute a health risk. The parliamentary report came days after a study by Birmingham University was published, delivering less glowing conclusions on vaping. While e-cigarettes “are safer in terms of cancer risk”, they impair lung cells from removing bacteria and other unwanted particles, it was suggested.
A spokesman for Benson & Hedges and Silk Cut owner JTI said: “We are encouraged the committee is recommending the Government work towards a more risk-proportionate regulatory environment based on scientific evidence, which could include a greater freedom to communicate e-cigarettes as a less harmful option.”