Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to address the House as Minister of State with special responsibility for public health, well-being and the national drugs strategy. I will talk about vaping and the use of other nicotine products by our young people and what the Government is doing about this public health challenge. Every day, I hear from parents, teachers and coaches who worry about how many of our children are vaping. Residents and Tidy Towns organisations also see the proliferation of vape shops in our towns and villages and the litter caused by disposable vapes. Before we discuss newer products such as vapes, we must remember that the nicotine product that remains the biggest single health threat to our young people is combustible tobacco. Cigarette smoking is both addictive and lethal. According to international analysis, it remains the biggest single risk factor driving disability. In our country the life expectancy of a smoker is on average ten years shorter than that of a person who has never smoked. Our own data tells us that smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke kills more than 12 of our people every day. Smoking during childhood and adolescence causes reduced lung function. There is evidence it increases the risk of developing psychoactive disorders in later life.

There is a long and proud tradition in Ireland across all political parties of introducing strong tobacco control measures. That started with our world-famous workplace smoking ban, introduced in 2004 by the Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin. Successive Governments have built on that and achieved a further driving down of our smoking rates. Our most recent measures include a ban on the sale of cigarettes at events aimed at children, from vending machines and from pop-up shops. We have also increased to 21 the minimum legal age of sale of tobacco products. This will come into effect in 2028. We have made much progress but we cannot rest on our laurels. The prevalence of smoking among children was a frightening 19% in 2002 but it is now less than 5% according to the 2022 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study. This reduction is very welcome. However, we want that figure to be zero. Our children should be free from a future blighted by the harms of tobacco.

The data on our adolescents is more worrying. The European Schools Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs survey assesses the health behaviours of our 15- and 16-year-olds. The 2024 survey showed that one in eight in that age group reported that they are smokers. The objective of our national tobacco control policy, Tobacco Free Ireland, is to reduce our smoking rates to less than 5% of our population. The principles underpinning that policy are that this is not a normal activity and that we should not have this for our children. This is about the protection of our children.

We are currently revising that policy to examine further measures we can take finally to eliminate the enormous burden on our health system caused by tobacco. A Bill that is currently being brought through the UK Parliament will create a smoke-free generation by banning the sale of tobacco to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009. We will examine all possible options, including groundbreaking measures like the UK approach. In the context of the devastation caused by smoking, e-cigarettes and other nicotine products represent a reduction. There is a general scientific consensus that they are less harmful than smoking. It is important to stress that outside of the possible benefits for a smoker, there is nothing good about these products. For our young people, these products do nothing other than deliver nicotine and addictive drugs. The primary risk of these products is that the use of nicotine may become an addiction that will result in tobacco smoking and the harm that can cause people.

Since 2014, the World Health Organization has recommended that the sale of e-cigarettes to minors be prohibited. This is because of the evidence of potential long-term consequences for brain development in adolescents caused by nicotine exposure. Our own Health Research Board evidence review from 2020 found that adolescents who vape are more likely to smoke. E-cigarettes or vapes have been regulated at EU level since 2014 under the EU tobacco products directive, which was transposed into Irish law by regulation in 2016. These regulations imposed many restrictions on vapes. Health warnings advertising that e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is a highly addictive substance, are mandatory on packaging.

The regulations also include a limit on the maximum nicotine concentration allowed for vapes containing nicotine and require manufacturers or importers to notify the HSE of all products that they place on the market. The advertisement of e-cigarettes on television, radio and online is also prohibited. These are some of the measures in EU law and we have since added to that with our own laws to further strengthen the regulation of vapes.

I acknowledge the work of my colleague, the former Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, who also played a role in this. The Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Act 2023 introduced a range of measures to further protect our young people. The most important was a ban on the sale of nicotine vapes to under-18s. That law also prohibited their sale by retail workers under the age of 18, with an exception for small family-run businesses. The Act banned the advertising of these products in cinemas, in or within 200 m of a school, on public transport and in taxis. These measures were designed to further limit children's exposure to messages normalising or glamorising the use of vapes and to support the ban on their sale to under-18s. The Act also reduced the types of outlets that could sell these products. From next week, vapes will no longer be sold from vending machines, which is important. It is a big step for us to ensure that happens. The sale of these products at events that are aimed at children is banned and their sale from pop-up shops or stalls that might appear at festivals will be banned from 2026. It is critical that we break the link between the sale of these products and events that our young people enjoy.

The annual licence system for the retail sale of vapes and tobacco products under the Act reflects the seriousness of these products. It will provide our enforcement authority, the national environmental health service, with up-to-date information on businesses in operation. That requirement will come into effect for all retailers of these products in February 2026. A minimum suspension period will apply to retailers that are convicted of offences.

On the use of nicotine vapes, the 2022 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study found that 19% of 12- to 17-year-olds had used one and 13% reported that they had used one in the past 30 days. These responses date from before the ban on their sale to minors was introduced so that measure will likely reduce the number. However, we must be realistic. There are other ways that our children can access these products. The European schools project on alcohol and drugs, dating from 2024, demonstrates this. Some 32% of our 15- and 16-year-olds have tried vapes. Some 16% stated they are current users and 7% reported daily use. These numbers are unacceptable and one of my priorities, as the Minister of State with responsibility for public health, is to take whatever action we can to bring them down to zero. The Government is determined to tackle this issue. We do not want our children using nicotine.

We can all understand how a child might be attracted to vapes, with their colourful appearance, attractive flavours, flavour names and the variety on display in our ordinary grocery shops and newsagents. I do not think it is an overstatement to say that these products are the revenge of the tobacco industry. That is why I look forward to bringing forward legislation with the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, which we are currently working on, to address the aspects of vapes that can be attractive to young people. That law will be in two Bills on the advice of Office of the Attorney General. The Public Health (Single Use Vapes) Bill will ban the sale of all single-use or disposable vapes. That Bill is at an advanced stage of drafting and is prioritised for publication in this term. The removal of these low-price products should reduce their availability for our children, as well as addressing the huge environmental issue caused by their disposal.

The Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) (Amendment) Bill will restrict the colours and imagery on the packaging and on the devices themselves to make them less attractive to our children. It will also ban devices resembling products such as toys to ensure that the Irish market does not see the evolution of vapes into a multiuse device that specifically attracts our children. The Bill will also restrict the flavours for sale and prohibit all flavour descriptors other than the basic names so as to eliminate the marketing potential of child-friendly flavours. The Bill will ban the point-of-sale display and advertising of these products in our shops so that our children are not exposed to vapes in their everyday life and they are not seen as ordinary grocery goods. This Bill is also at an advanced stage of drafting and prioritised for publication in this term. These measures cannot come quickly enough and I looking forward to doing my part to ensure that this legislation is enacted as soon as possible and to have the support of this House.

Nicotine pouches are a relatively new product. The evidence is not clear yet on their potential health harms but we know that they contain nicotine, which is an addictive substance. However, they have become very visible here in the past two years and are marketed heavily. The use of these products remains low, with an overall 1% of adults currently using them, but I acknowledge that use is highest among the cohort of those aged from 15 to 24, at 3%. They are used by 3% of current smokers and 2% of former smokers. The results from the European school project on alcohol and other drugs in 2024 show that 3.7% of 15- to 16-year-olds are currently using nicotine pouches, with 7.6% having used them at some point. The Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, is giving ongoing consideration to the possible approaches to the regulation of nicotine pouches. Introducing laws on these products has already been discussed at EU level in the context of discussions on a revised tobacco products directive.

An EU-wide public consultation was carried out in 2023 to gain views on regulations on novel products, such as nicotine pouches. The range of tobacco products is always expanding and this is a problem for us. We must be effective, and the Minister is working on this, in ensuring we introduce a revised tobacco products directive as soon as possible and for that proposal to cover all new nicotine products, such as pouches, in order to protect our young people.

I will take the opportunity to address the issue of HHC, which is a significant problem. Many Deputies were in touch with me about the HHC content of vapes being sold nationwide. HHC was classified as a controlled drug through an order of the Government on 29 July last. HHC is now incorporated into the misuse of drugs legislation framework as a schedule 1 controlled drug, which is the strictest level of control. A lot of work is being done. As a result of the use of HHC, we have seen hospitalisations and psychotic episodes. Many people are struggling with addiction as a result of this and similar drugs. As the Minister of State with responsibility for the national drugs strategy, I would like to reassure parents who may be worried about their children and the impact of HHC. Help and support are available. I urge parents to use the HSE's excellent resource on drugs.ie, the parents' guide to alcohol and drugs. It provides factual information and advice on talking to children about the risks associated with illicit drugs. The HSE will also host a webinar in the coming weeks entitled, "Vaping products and psychoactive substances: what you should know as a parent." This event will provide information on HHC and is designed to support parents and guardians who are concerned about vaping and emerging drug trends among young people.

It will also provide information on prevention strategies and discuss the role of parents in guiding healthy decisions. These are really important to me. In the budget negotiations, I will be seeking funding for programmes targeted specifically at children on the dangers of vaping and nicotine use and that can be controlled nationwide and run through sports and youth clubs and local authorities. I will give an example. In my own area, I attended the launch of the Not Around Us campaign, which was developed by schoolchildren in Carlow–Kilkenny alongside the local councils and through the Sláintecare Healthy Communities programme. The message of the children was clear. They want to people to consider the impact of their smoking and vaping on them as children. It is also a matter of second-hand smoking. Smoking should not be normalised. What we are really saying about vaping is that it should not to be seen as glamorous or normal. I want to see campaigns similar to the one I have mentioned rolled out across the country so the voices of children are heard and the normalisation of vapes among them is tackled.

I also want to address the issue of nicotine pouches, which we spoke about earlier. I thank everyone for being here today. Vaping is a very serious issue. From working with the Department officials and the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, I am aware that a lot of work is being done. I assure Members that we intend to do a lot more. Our priority now is to get the two Bills into the House as soon as possible. Like the Minister, I will be looking for Members' full support.

See this speech in context