Spain Banning Flavours and Disposables
The Spanish attack on vaping by banning juice flavours and disposable ecigs will be a massive blow to public health, according to the World Vapers' Alliance
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by Dave Cross
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Grounded in lies of a gateway effect and targeting teens, Spain’s government has decided to completely ban juice flavours and disposable ecigs. The evidence-free move is guaranteed to lead to a rise in the number of Spanish smokers and has been firmly rejected by the World Vapers' Alliance (WVA).
The Secretary of State for Health's announcement regarding the ban on disposable vapes and flavours focussed on the action being the best way to curb youth use.
Secretary of State for Health Javier Padilla and Minister of Health Mónica García stated: “the draft amendment to Royal Decree 579/2017 will be available, which will include the ban on disposable electronic cigarettes that are harmful to health and have an environmental footprint.
“Flavours and flavourings in electronic cigarettes are also being banned, and generic packaging for cigarette packets will be legislated.”
The WVA is warning that this policy will fail to meet its goals and will have severe consequences for public health.
Alberto Gómez Hernández, policy manager at the World Vapers' Alliance, stated: “Disposable devices and flavours are essential to make vaping a viable alternative for millions of smokers. Their ban condemns millions of people to continue smoking, and it also encourages the growth of the black market, making it easier for young people to access potentially dangerous products.”
The WVA points out that these prohibitions ignore the benefits of vaping as a harm-reduction tool and the crucial role that flavours play in helping smokers stay away from cigarettes.
Gómez Hernández continued: “Instead of adopting prohibitive policies that fail to distinguish between traditional tobacco and lower-risk alternatives like vaping, the government should opt for regulation based on scientific evidence that protects youth without punishing adults trying to improve their health. This ban clearly shows the government’s ignorance of what has worked in the fight against smoking in countries like the UK or Sweden.”
The WVA is calling on the Spanish Government to reconsider this proposal and to promote harm reduction policies that encourage safer alternatives to smoking rather than banning them.
The World Vapers’ Alliance says it amplifies the voice of vapers worldwide and empowers them to make a difference in their communities.
“Our members are vapers associations and individual vapers from all over the world,” it says.
Alberto Gómez Hernández is the Policy Manager of the World Vapers' Alliance. He is Spanish and currently based in Brussels. He holds a degree in Economics from the Carlos III University of Madrid and has worked for several non-profit organisations and think tanks in recent years. He is an experienced activist and passionate about tobacco harm reduction.
References:
- The World Vapers’ Alliance - www.worldvapersalliance.com
Photo Credit:
Flag photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash
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.
