RSPH Invent Shock Vape News
The Royal Society of Public Health seeks to raise its profile by slamming ecig retailers.
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by Dave Cross
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The RSPH, according to the RSPH, has a simple mission and it’s “to educate and empower individuals, effect change and celebrate excellence.” The release of the nonsensical “undercover investigation” leads many observers to question if they’ve forgotten what the words educate and excellence mean.
“RSPH is calling for UK vape retailers to adhere to a code of conduct,” it states, “as it reveals results of an undercover investigation showing that almost nine in 10 stores (87%) are either knowingly or unwittingly prepared to sell e-cigarettes to people who have never smoked or vaped.”
Unfortunately for the RSPH, there is no code of conduct for vape retailers. There is a code produced by the Independent British Vape Trade Association, which states: “Vape products are for current or former smokers and existing users of vaping devices, therefore never knowingly sell to anyone who is not a current of former smoker, or a current vaper.”
This independent organisation has around 40 members and is not representative of the huge network of 1,700 vape stores around the country, nor does it speak for them. Consequently, where the RSPH claim that the stores they visited acted “in direct violation” of the code, they didn’t because they aren’t members.
The RSPH claim: “Almost half (45%) of stores did not check whether new customers were current or former smokers. And, three quarters (76%) of those that did check continued to encourage the customer to start vaping, even once they knew they were a non-smoker.”
Shirley Cramer, the RSPH’s Chief Executive, said: “High street vape stores are the visible face of vaping in the UK, and so it is crucial that they are seen as responsible retailers of evidence-based quitting aids – rather than lifestyle products.”
Clive Bates, harm reduction advocate, was swift to deliver a rebuke as he called the survey a “cheap publicity stunt” and “a fake alarm about a non-problem”. Bates writes: “the primary purpose of this exercise has little to do with public health but is a publicity stunt for an ailing organisation in a declining field that offers ever less to the public or to health.”
Bates was so unimpressed he was moved to send a letter of complaint to Dr. Cramer. “I write to express dismay and disappointment at your ill-founded criticism of vaping retailers,” he pens.
Clive Bates lists out a number of reasons why checks possibly weren’t made, but culminates with the most important one: “this is a matter of adult choice and you should not be wasting resources on it.”
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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