A ban on the sale of e-cigarettes is soon to be implemented to under-18s. The new law is to be implemented under new legislation proposed by the Scottish government.
For years now there has been no laws or regulations for e-cigarettes and e-liquids. New laws are coming in to effect by 2016 but now it looks like laws may be arriving a lot sooner than that.
In 2016 various tobacco laws will come into effect including:- Banning the sale of 10 packs of cigarettes, and also banning the sale of small pouches of rolling tobacco. At the same time as the new tobacco laws, e-cigarette laws are expected too, but there is much speculation on what the new laws will be. We expect e-Cigarettes to become re-categorized to either medical devices or tobacco products. Advertising e-Cigarettes may also be limited like they are with standard cigarettes, and also the government are looking into banning flavoured e-Liquid as some say the wide selection of modern flavours are appealing to minors and catalyse smoking in youngsters. Although we at Vvapour totally agree that e-Cigarettes and e-Liquids should be regulated to ensure premium pure quality, and e-Cigarettes should defiantly be unavailable to minors, but the proposed laws on banning flavours may just push ex-smokers back to cigarettes.
Public health minister Maureen Watt stated banning the sale of e-Cigarettes to under 18s is to be forwarded in a Health Bill, to be introduced later this year, sooner than the expected 2016 legislation.
The Health Bill will also make it illegal for an adult to buy e-cigarettes for a youngster. The Bill also aims to stop the smoking of tobacco, or the vaping of e-cigarettes, in the close vicinity of hospital and government buildings as a statutory offence.
Currently the NHS operate a policy banning smoking tobacco on their grounds, but not currently backed by laws.
Ms Watt said: “E-cigarettes might have a place when it comes to helping current smokers to quit their habit.
“This government is not opposed to e-cigarettes, but we think it is right to protect children from nicotine addiction, and to limit the prevalence of smoking behaviours. Through this bill we will seek to strike that balance.”
She added: “We have long thought that it is wrong for people to have to walk through clouds of smoke when visiting hospitals. Following our consultation, and to support NHS boards, we believe the time is right to make it a statutory offence to smoke near health buildings.”