Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 3 November 2021

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health

General Scheme of the Public Health (Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill 2019: Department of Health

Photo of Seán KyneSeán Kyne (Fine Gael)
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I thank the officials from the Department for being with us and for their work on this important proposed legislation. It is a follow up on a great deal of progressive legislation relating to nicotine over a considerable number of years.

The purpose of the Bill is to stop or discourage young people getting hooked. Ms Gordon referred to the statistics that indicate how few cigarettes it takes for children to become hooked. That is an important measure. The people, mainly adults, who wish to give up cigarettes and turn to e-cigarettes are in a slightly different category. Research states there is insufficient evidence to conclude that heat-not-burn tobacco products are less harmful than conventional tobacco cigarettes. They are all included in this. Is this being kept under review subject to further evidence? I refer in particular to the cohort who currently smoke and have changed to heat-not-burn products.