ETHRA: It's Time To Act
The time to act on a new European Union consultation is now, according to ETHRA (European Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates)
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by Dave Cross
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“This is one of the most important public consultations to date and it is essential that a large number of consumers and consumer associations take part,” says ETHRA.
“Part 1 of the Evaluation was a call for evidence which received over 24,000 responses. We need to match or better this number. ETHRA’s submission to the call for evidence can be found here. All submissions to the call for evidence are here. Well done to everyone who got their comments in.
“The given purpose of the Evaluation is the need for legislation to keep up with the ‘rapid rise’ in emerging products which have entered the EU market since TPD 2 was agreed. Examples given are nicotine-free vaping products, nicotine pouches and heated tobacco products. Other areas of concern they identify are online sales and social media. We know that some member states have already banned online sales and there have been growing calls to ban the advertising and promotion of vaping products on social media.
“A targeted stakeholder consultation will make up the final part of the Evaluation. We are confident that ETHRA will receive an invitation to participate as we have for previous consultations.”
Despite Brexit, experts have been warning for a long time that UK vapers and organisations need to pay close attention to what is happening in Europe and help out where they can as it is believed that closer ties with Europe will mean the adoption of certain standards such as the Tobacco Products Directive.
Given the current moves to clamp down on aspects of vaping in the United Kingdom, it is reasonable to see that there would be little resistance from Parliament were we to consider adopting alignment with European policies that banned flavours.
“The Commission will also consider various reports for the Evaluation. These include the SCHEER report, the Report on the Application of the Tobacco Products Directive, and the Beating Cancer Plan, to name a few. These documents recommend harsh restrictions on safer nicotine products (SNPs), including flavour bans and adding SNPs to smoke-free environment legislation. These recommendations should be of great concern to consumers of tobacco harm reduction products.
“The Public Consultation will run until 16 May. It is open to EU citizens, consumer associations, academics and scientific experts, to name a few,” advises ETHRA.
In related matters, tobaccointelligence.com has published its findings from a recent survey of MEP’s opinions and knowledge.
References:
- Evaluation of the legislative framework for tobacco control - https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/13481-Evaluation-of-the-legislative-framework-for-tobacco-control_en
- ETHRA’s guide to with submitting to the consultation - https://ethra.co/news/127-big-eu-consultation-act-now
Photo Credit:
EU Flag Image by Mediamodifier from Pixabay
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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