Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the students from Riverchapel National School to the Seanad today. Rivertown and Courtown are beautiful parts of north Wexford. The students have been assured that if they behave themselves on the way home, they will not have any homework for the rest of the week. That is a political promise that can be delivered on.

I wish to raise today the issue of vaping. While it was a very welcome decision by Cabinet yesterday to proceed with restrictions on the sale and advertising of vaping products, I am concerned that the legislation does not go far enough. A number of secondary schools and youth organisations have reported and raised with me the issue of young people who have never smoked but are now taking up vaping. Part of the problem is because of the flavours that are introduced and the marketing around this. We need to treat vapes in exactly the same way as we treat cigarettes, with the same level of restrictions being applied. I ask that our concerns would be reflected in advance of the legislation being published and coming before these Houses. Certainly, we will be doing this in the context of parliamentary party discussions. There are very serious dangers that young people are now substituting vapes for cigarettes. While it certainly helps people off tobacco, there are still serious health consequences associated with vaping. We need to take this seriously when we look at issues around obesity, heart conditions and so on. We must ensure that we put in place the necessary regulatory frameworks to protect young people. I ask the Acting Leader to communicate those views back to the Minister.