AACS: UK ECIGARETTES REVIEW INCREASES PRESSURE ON GOVERNMENT

February 7, 2018: Already on the record as supporting the use of eCigarettes to help people quit, Public Health England (PHE) has released an updated independent review into the use of eCigarettes and the findings couldn’t be clearer: eCigarettes pose a fraction of the risks of smoking and switching completely from smoking to vaping conveys substantial health benefits.
The PHE findings put the ball firmly in Health Minister Greg Hunt’s court, says the Australasian Association of Convenience Stores (AACS), because Australian smokers are currently unable to legally purchase a product with the potential to drastically improve their health, help them quit, and even save their lives.
AACS CEO Jeff Rogut says the new PHE independent review is the most compelling reason to date for the Australian Government to urgently develop a legal framework for the sale of eCigarettes as a means of helping people kick the habit of traditional tobacco smoking.
“In other nations around the world, Governments have provided the choice for smokers to access eCigarettes as a safer alternative than smoking traditional tobacco, and as a means to help them quit altogether. It has worked,” Mr Rogut says.
“In Australia, we are preventing people from enjoying the same choice. At this critical time when we should be making it easier for people to quit, our Government and various major medical bodies have deemed it appropriate to make it more difficult for Australians to quit smoking by denying them access to products with the potential to help.
“It’s frankly embarrassing that we are so far behind the rest of the world when it comes to helping our citizens access safer products. All the available international evidence demonstrates the opportunities to improve public health outcomes that eCigarettes, as part of a coordinated range of measures, can deliver.
“ECigarettes have helped millions of people quit smoking internationally yet the Department of Health continues to take a different view of their potential here. And it’s a view at odds with most Australian voters too,” Mr Rogut says.
AACS research into this area shows Australians are overwhelmingly in support of legalising eCigarettes if they can help smokers quit. More than half of Australians feeling so strongly about the issue that it could influence their vote.
The AACS research – the most extensive ever undertaken on the topic of eCigarettes in Australia – shows that 54% of Australians view the legalisation of eCigarettes as a potential vote-influencing or even vote-changing issue. It also shows that 73% of Australians would support the legalisation of eCigarettes to help smokers quit.
The AACS has identified several key considerations in the legalisation of eCigarettes, including restrictions in sales to minors, ensuring they are child tamper proof, contain an ingredients list, comply with quality standards and are manufactured and sold with strict safety standards in place.
But the urgency to develop and implement such a framework cannot be overstated, Mr Rogut says.
“If the Australian Government and the health lobby are serious about reducing the incidence of smoking in the community, then we must provide smokers more options. ECigarettes have been found to be safer than traditional tobacco smoking and they have been proven to help people quit,” Mr Rogut says.
“Let’s help Australians quit too.”
Some of the key findings stated in the Public Health England Evidence Review include:
Vaping poses only a small fraction of the risks of smoking and switching completely from smoking to vaping conveys substantial health benefits;
ECigarette use is associated with improved quit success rates over the last year and an accelerated drop in smoking rates across England;
Many thousands of smokers incorrectly believe that vaping is as harmful as smoking; around 40% of smokers have not even tried an eCigarette;
There is much public misunderstanding about nicotine. Less than 10% of adults understand that most of the harms to health from smoking are not caused by nicotine;
The use of eCigarettes in the UK has plateaued over the last few years at just under 3 million;
The evidence does not support the concern that eCigarettes are a route into smoking among young people. Youth smoking rates in the UK continue to decline. Regular use is rare and is almost entirely confined to those who have smoked.
Further information:
Jeff Rogut
Chief Executive Officer
Australasian Association of Convenience Stores
Ph: +61 467 873 789
Media enquiries:
Stephen Naylor
Wise McBaron Communication
Ph: +61 (2) 9279 4770