Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank colleagues across the Seanad for their contributions and support for this Bill. This Bill will do three important things. First, it will make it illegal to sell vapes to people under the age of 18. Second, it will bring in more restrictions on advertising for vapes. Third, it will bring in additional controls on the sale of both tobacco and nicotine inhaling products. This includes a ban on vending machines, a ban on mobile sales units and the licensing regime.

In terms of timing, I want to see the ban on the sale of vapes to those under the age of 18 in law before Christmas. I will be working with the Seanad so that hopefully, we can move through the remaining Stages as quickly as we can. The Bill will then go to the President, who I hope will sign it. As soon as the President signs it, I will enact the section to immediately ban the sale of vapes to those under the age of 18. That should be our goal.

We are going to go further. In parallel with this Bill, we are drafting a second Bill. The public consultation for the second Bill will open next week and the health committee has already done a lot of detailed work on the measures that can be contained within the second Bill. What are we asking for opinions on? It is on the colours. I believe, as many of us do, that these very attractive, cynical designs are targeting children. It is my view - I think it is the view of colleagues around the House - that the flavours, such as bubble gum and all these other flavours, are a cynical attempt by the tobacco industry to target children. On the issue of point-of-sale advertising, we are all aware of how we are bombarded by these colours and all these point-of-sale advertisements when somebody goes to buy their petrol or goes to a retailer to do their shopping.

In addition, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael McGrath, has asked for the public consultation to include taxation, which is something he wants to bring in. We are also looking at a full ban on disposable vapes. The Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth, as has been referenced, is pursuing this as well. I do not mind at all which Bill it is in; I just want disposable vapes to be banned. It is not an easy thing to do, because we are within the Single Market and we have to find the right legal mechanism through which to do that. As I said, the public consultation will begin next week. It includes a consultation on vaping in cars, for example. The Bill that is before us is an important one and we must get it enacted before Christmas, and the second Bill will allow us to go even further.

Colleagues have asked various questions and raised various issues around the licensing regime. I have asked my officials to revert to colleagues with a detailed note to any who have raised this and we can go back to the Seanad in general on the questions that have been raised. One question was regarding the amount. Within the Bill, it is the Minister for Health of the day who will by regulation determine the amount. To give colleagues a sense of what is going on around the world, in Australia, it ranges from approximately €160 to approximately €780 in different states. In Canada, in Ottawa, it is €680. In Oregon, it is €880. In Finland, it ranges from €100 to €180, up to a maximum of €1,000 for combined nicotine and tobacco. In Ireland, our own jurisdiction, we already have a €500 annual fee per category of alcohol product. If, for example, a retailer sells wine, beer, spirits and cider, they will pay €2,000 per year. We will look at all of that in the round to decide where to go with it.

We are not including larger packs of cigarettes in this Bill, but we will keep it under review. We will continue to look at the evidence to see if there is a clear link between the larger packs and higher smoking rates. We have to ultimately be evidence-led. However, if, as colleagues have said, there is a pricing differential that makes it cheaper to buy more cigarettes, I fully agree that we should remove any financial incentive for people to buy larger packs, for all the obvious reasons.

The reason the Department of Health, rather than the Revenue Commissioners, will lead on the licensing system, is that this is first and foremost a public health regime. The purpose here is not to raise revenue; it is a public health regime, so the Department of Health is taking the lead on it. However, I understand where colleagues are coming from.

On the issue of the environmental health service, it does have a very active role. It has been pointed out that the prosecutions are low, but that is because they are working in a way to have enforcement and compliance with the law and the regulations without having to go there. I want to acknowledge that our environmental health officers do important work right across the country.

I will finish by thanking colleagues again. We will be seeking to proceed to Committee Stage as soon as the Seanad can facilitate it-----