Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this issue, which is one I have become increasingly concerned about. The Bill seeks to introduce a licensing system for retail sales of tobacco and e-cigarettes. It also seeks to introduce a range of restrictions on the sale of the products, including their sale from mobile premises and vending machines.

I strongly welcome that the Bill proposes banning the sale of e-cigarettes to under 18-year-olds and the sale of tobacco and e-cigarettes by those under 18. It further proposes restrictions on the advertising and promotion of e-cigarettes. However, I have a couple of issues with the Bill and I do not understand why it would provide for an exemption for sales by 16 and 17-year-olds who are related to the licensee. We do not provide exemptions for alcohol or gambling and people who work in those premises. It was also pointed out that there is nothing in the Bill on the sale of flavoured vapes, which are clearly directed towards children, nor on their nicotine content.

The use of vapes has exploded in recent years. It was a product which many people thought would impact positively and help people to stop smoking but unfortunately it has become a product of choice for children and young people. I have spoken to primary school teachers who say they know children as young as nine or ten using vapes, which is appalling. They are sold with flavours such as: menthol; mint; dessert creams; fruit; citrus; sweets; candies; nuts; and spices. It is clear they are directed at children and young people because they are also sold in brightly coloured packaging that would appeal to young people.

The HSE has reported that one in five young people say they have used vapes, which is a frightening figure. I know of some adults in their 20s and 30s who never smoked and who are regular users of vapes. Many pubs and restaurants are thankfully clamping down on the use of vapes on their premises and I would like to see it implemented and policed in the same way as cigarettes. Nicotine, no matter what way it is delivered, is highly addictive. Recent studies have shown that the side effects of vapes are becoming more widely known. These include: asthma; lung scarring; organ damage; and most worryingly, some have cancer-causing chemicals in them, which are particularly harmful when those chemicals are burned within the vapes.

A recent study reported by the Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine found that about 18% of people who switched to vaping have been able to quit smoking. That is about twice as many as the number who have quit using other methods. However, 80% of those among that 18% of people who quit smoking are still vaping. Of those who used other methods, 91% kicked nicotine products altogether. Therefore, it is not really doing what it says on the tin or what we thought it would do. This is not an approved way of getting off cigarettes and it is not safe. It is highly addictive and causes serious health issues. That is with the regulated vapes but we know there are many being sold that have virtually no safety standards applied. My final message to young people and adults is not to start and if they have started, please stop now.

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