David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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161. To ask the Minister for Health the steps she is taking to future proof nicotine product legislation and regulation in forthcoming legislation on such products to ensure that amendment bills are not required each time industry creates a novel product; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37949/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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My current legislative priority is the comprehensive regulation of nicotine inhaling products addressing  point of sale display, the appearance of these devices, packaging, flavours and a ban on disposable vapes. Ireland is one of several EU countries that are moving ahead with domestic legislation on these products in the absence of EU-wide regulation which would be more effective, as it would ensure that the measures could not be avoided through cross-border purchases.

In relation to future proofing law for nicotine products, I have, on behalf of Ireland, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Croatia and Spain, recently called on the European Commission to bring forward the revised Tobacco Products Directive as soon as possible. I have called for that proposal to include all novel tobacco and nicotine products and for this measure to include a ban on cross-border distance sales to avoid the circumvention of any national measures.

I have also formally written to Commissioner Várhelyi to make it clear that Ireland would be fully committed to progressing negotiations on such a Directive during Ireland's Presidency next year.