Joe Nocera points out to Australia, in an article for the Sydney Morning Herald, that Sweden has stopped smoking. The population has managed to get under The Lancet’s target of 5% by adopting a harm reduction approach and embracing snus. He likens Australia’s ‘quit or die’ approach as being “a classic example of the perfect being the enemy of the good”.
Adopting a harm reduction approach to smoking and vaping doesn’t come without problems, as New Zealand is aware of. Last year, the country benefitted to the tune of just under £1-billion in duty on tobacco sales. A spokesperson for British American Tobacco said: "Whilst tobacco is expected to remain at the core of our business for the near future, the BAT Group has over the last few years been dedicating significant resources to offering a range of less harmful alternatives, like e-cigarettes, and we support appropriate regulation of this emerging category.” If books are to be balanced, there may well come a point when vaping is taxed in a similar manner to smoking.
Could vendors be looking at another problem?
A Washington court has recently allowed an insurance company to divest itself of any responsibility in a public liability case. In a move that will send many vape shop owners rushing to read the terms of their policies, Atlantic Casualty Insurance Co. argued that their responsibility only extended to incidents occurring on the premises of the insured. As Marlene Rubertt lost a lot of blood (and several teeth) away from the store, the court agreed that they bore no responsibility for settling any claim.
Meanwhile, Ecigintelligence write that the Global Forum for Nicotine will announce, “trade barriers against e-cigarettes, or the outright banning of vapour products, contravene world trading regulations.” It reports that Marina Foltea, managing director of Trade Pacts (a Geneva-based investment consultancy) points out that 23 countries currently violate article IX of the 1994 World Trade Organization (WTO) General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).
Following our recent coverage of the smoking ban in UK prisons, in an extensive and interesting article, Hardeep Matharu writes: “The Government’s campaigns against new psychoactive substances (NPS) and mobile phones being smuggled into prisons have utterly failed. All prisons are completely awash with drugs and mobiles. If they can’t stop mobile phones, cannabis, heroin and NPS getting into prisons, what hope, really, do they have of stopping tobacco?”
Come to that, what chance do you stand of keeping hold of your vape device in public? Mobile phone users are very aware that scooter riders have been targeting them, now the Huddersfield Daily Examiner reports that robbers picked on an 18-yr old man just for his electronic cigarette. Kirklees CID would like to hear from witnesses by calling 101 and quoting reference: 13170274812.
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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EU Commission Called Out
The World Vapers' Alliance calls out the EU Commission's hostile stance on Tobacco Harm Reduction in light of Tobacco Product Directive consultation findings
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by Dave Cross
WHO HIGHLIGHTS SWEDISH SUCCESS
A major new report from the World Health Organization (WHO) highlights Sweden’s success in going smoke-free with the help of less harmful cigarette alternatives
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by Dave Cross
MEPs Want Integrated EU Strategy
MEPs propose actions to prevent and lower the prevalence of non-communicable diseases in the EU, in order to reduce the burden on healthcare systems and on citizens’ quality of life
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by Dave Cross
Report Raises Concerns About EU Transparency
A recent report raises concerns about the EU’s approach to transparency and inclusivity as member states challenge the Commission's stance on tobacco control
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by Dave Cross
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