Concerns About France Remain
The World Vapers’ Alliance says concerns remain over the vaping restrictions detailed in France’s national tobacco control program
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by Dave Cross
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Launching the National Tobacco Control Program, Rousseau announced that it contains 5 strong commitments and 26 measures to “fight against a health scourge”.
- To protect young people from smoking by increasing the price of tobacco, to strengthen controls on the sale vaping products, to ban disposables, and restrict packaging
- To support smokers by directing them to online quit resources
- To protect the environment by banning smoking from beaches and banning disposable vapes
- To equate vaping with smoking for tax purposes
- To strengthen surveillance of tobacco and vaping products and develop a “coherent roadmap” of legislation cracking down on vaping and nicotine pouches
The PNLT plan includes measures such as limiting accessibility to tobacco products by raising prices on cigarettes, introducing plain packaging on cigarettes and vaping products, and further extending smoke-free areas. The program includes points aimed at helping smokers quit by offering personalised support through call centres and strengthening accessibility to Nicotine Replacement Therapies (NRTs).
Michael Landl, Director of the World Vapers’ Alliance, warned of the potential pitfalls of a lack of harm reduction approach within these measures: “The program falls short in recognising the role of harm reduction. NRT’s are beneficial for some, but they are not the sole solution. Many smokers find them ineffective, unlike alternatives such as vaping, nicotine pouches, and heat-not-burn products. These alternatives have been instrumental in reducing smoking rates and should be a key element of any tobacco control strategy.”
The program’s proposed ban on disposable vapes and restrictions on vaping flavours is particularly worrisome. These measures might counteract the progress made in smoking cessation through vaping, warns World Vapers’ Alliance.
Landl added: “Banning disposable vapes and restricting flavours are steps backwards in the fight against smoking. Such prohibitions only serve to drive consumers either back to smoking or to black markets. We’ve seen time and again that prohibition doesn’t work. France should look to countries like Sweden, where a balanced approach to harm reduction has led to significant public health gains. The French government must recognise the importance of offering a variety of less harmful alternatives to smokers.”
The proposed policy still waits to be adopted into the law. The WVA is urging the French authorities to reconsider these aspects of the program and adopt a more holistic harm reduction approach so that France can truly lead the way in tobacco control and public health.
References:
- Un nouveau Programme national de lutte contre le tabagisme 2023-2027 - https://sante.gouv.fr/actualites/actualites-du-ministere/article/un-nouveau-programme-national-de-lutte-contre-le-tabagisme-2023-2027
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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