Call for Northern Ireland Executive to set smoke-free target

As disposable vapes are banned across the UK, one charity is calling on the Northern Ireland Executive to create smoke and vape-free places.

The ban, which is in effect from Sunday, means that shops and businesses will no longer be allowed to stock and sell disposable vapes.

Anyone found guilty of stocking or supplying single-use vapes in Northern Ireland could receive a maximum penalty of up two years in prison and a fine of up to £5,000.

But the public will still be able to buy reusable vapes.

Asthma and Lung UK NI policy officer, Andrew Wilson, told BBC News NI he welcomes the ban and would like the executive to set a target for making Northern Ireland smoke-free.

Speaking to BBC News NI, Mr Wilson said: “We would like the executive to push on from this with the momentum gained and perhaps look at creating smoke and vape-free places in Northern Ireland whether that’s in our playgrounds, whether that’s in schools or whether that’s at our hospitals.”

He added that research shows there are “very real links with vaping to inflammation of your airways which will then exacerbate existing health conditions, whether you have asthma or COPD”.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill is UK-wide legislation that would ban tobacco products for anyone born after January 1, 2009.

It would also bring in restrictions on the advertising and sale of vapes, as well as reviewing the packaging of e-cigarettes.

Mr Wilson said that the Northern Ireland Executive should publicly state its target for a smoke-free Northern Ireland and bring “a bit of equity with the rest of the British Isles who have all done so”.

He also called for a new tobacco control strategy.

In Northern Ireland, the legislation to ban disposable vapes was passed by the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera).

Its minister, Andrew Muir, said the single-use vape ban is an important measure to help the environment.

He said it would also help people’s health and alleviate potential fire risks.

The minister said retailers are also obliged to take back disposable vapes for recycling once the ban comes in place.

He added that he has been engaging with his counterpart in the Republic of Ireland who is progressing similar legislation.

• They are single use
• They are already filled and charged
• They are activated by inhaling
• The battery only lasts a short while, sometimes only a day, so they are designed to be discarded
• They are often small and fit in a pocket
• They do not have a replaceable coil and cannot be recharged or refilled

Paul Lagan, who owns a chain of vape shops across Belfast, said the change would be better for the environment, but he has some concerns for the future.

“We’re reducing waste – that’s good as a business and as a vaping community,” he said.

“One of the bigger concerns is the vaping tax that’s going to be introduced next year where it’s £2.20 on a 10ml bottle of liquid (for reusable vapes), effectively doubling the cost of many of these liquids.”

Mr Lagan said he thinks licensing vape shops could help prevent young people from accessing vapes as easily.

He added that banning certain flavours could also create a black market for vapes rather than a preventative measure.

Darragh McKay said the ban is a “very good idea” as disposable vapes are “all bright colours” and “not like cigarettes” which have warnings on them.

“I don’t think vapes should be banned entirely because not often you see young people smoking like refillable vapes, it’s always disposable vapes,” he said.

“Refillable vapes are good for like your mum getting off cigarettes.”

Alison Nic Craith doesn’t vape but thinks the new legislation is “great”.

“Particularly for kids, because there is so many 11 and 12-year-olds now that vape,” she told BBC News NI.

“I think the shops should just be stricter and like checking IDs, I think that is the best way to go about it.”

Auron Cull, who does vape but would like to quit, thinks the ban on disposable vapes is a good idea.

“Whenever I walk about town I just see all these school kids walking about with e-cigs and they go into the shops,” he said.

“In some cases it helps people to get off cigarettes, but then they get off the cigarettes and they’re onto the vapes for X amount of time.”

John Watson doesn’t vape but thinks the ban is a good idea because of the environmental impact the disposable vapes can have.

“I know quite a few people I work with are quite, not annoyed about it, but more kind of frustrated because of the handiness of going and getting one, they’re not really wanting to have to go and buy cartridges to fill up,” he said.

He said he knows of people who are “stock-piling” disposable vapes.

Public Health Agency research found that 46% of year 14 school pupils surveyed currently vape, despite it being illegal to sell or supply vapes to under 18s.

Strategic lead for tobacco control with the PHA, Colette Rogers, said the PHA is asking parents and carers to “to use it as an opportunity to discourage vaping among young people and take steps to stop vapes from falling into the hands of under 18s”.