Help Fight New EU eCig Legislation

For those of you not already aware last month there was a vote in the EU parliament to decide whether eCigs would be classed as medication and instantly be governed by new laws and regulations. There was a great response from the vaping community signing petitions and writing letters of complaint against this, fortunately for once logic and common sense prevailed and they decided not to classify it as a medical product.

Now a month or so has passed the EU is now drafting new ways to ban or regulate the eCig industry and again we vapers are going to have another fight on our hands to retain the right to use our eCigs as a healthier alternative to traditional smoking.

The details of the new EU eCig Ban

The latest attempt by the EU to ban or control the eCig market is now under way, some documents have been leaked giving some details regarding one potential ban and some others are now being discussed in the public domain.

This includes but is not limited to the following:

• Banning refillable tank systems.
• Ban on all clearomisers allowing only for one time use cartridges to remain legal.
• Banning all flavours apart from those already approved in NRT, this means pretty much all of the current flavours we have available to us, not to mention the variation of similar flavours between different suppliers. Most of this is on the basis that they will appear attractive to none smokers and children.
• Maximum nicotine content of 10mg per unit.
• Requirement that all eCig devices deliver a constant and regulated dose of nicotine, which has been deemed impossible by most and also that even traditional cigarettes cannot guarantee a constant regulated delivery of nicotine.
• The banning of all advertising, be it television, print, and web, yes that means you will no longer be able to research and buy these products online.
• Ban on distance selling.

If any of all of the above gain traction and get passed in the EU parliament in Brussels then it will be the end of the vape industry in the EU and possibly worldwide. The development in technology clearly shows that people get a better experience from refillable and rebuildable clearomisers than they can from single use cartridges, so why prevent progress?

Having a choice of flavours makes the process far more pleasant. While many enjoy smoking a mint or tobacco flavour many prefer something different. I for one prefer fruity flavours to menthol or tobacco.

What to do?

The talk at the moment is suggesting we go a step further than last time and simply signing a petition and actually try and get the attention of our representatives urging for a “delete amendment 18 proposal”. We essentially need to write to our local MPs and MEPs to educate them fully on the matter and fight our side of the argument to explain firstly why electronic cigarettes are important to YOU, why this new legislation is wrong, by no means representative of the people and blatantly ignores the science.

The best approach according to people like Clive Bates is to write professionally and without anger as we need to get these people on our side, they are not responsible for drafting this legislation and so should not be the target of any harsh words despite how frustrated you might be about the possibility of having these products banned.

The best thing you can do is visit Clive’s Article and read it thoroughly as this explains every fine detail and also why it is in breach of many rights.

Two important online petitions all eCig users should sign as a matter of urgency! http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/43426 and http://www.petitiononline.com/fr33dom/petition.html

Our Thoughts – FIGHT!!

To ban eCigs and not ban smoking is one of the most irresponsible actions a government could ever make. It would be like banning paint-balling whilst guns were legal, it completely ignores science, unfortunately governments the world over have a history of ignoring scientific evidence in the favour of financial influence and greed.

We MUST fight this illogical attempt to ban something that was thrown out just 40 or so days ago. Everyone needs to rally together, and spread the word, tell everyone you know who vapes, or who has expressed an interest in buying an eCig, sharing the news via social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, and most importantly writing to your MP and trying to arrange a meeting. Petitions are still useful but this time we need to go one step further.

Dr Farsalinos (eCig researcher ) said:

“I am afraid that the European Union is once again trying to destroy the e-cigarette as an alternative-to-smoking product by trying to implement regulations that constitute a ban for the majority of products. Not only do they ignore science but they also make decisions that are against the will and vote of the MEPs just 40 days ago.”

source: The European Union ignores science and common sense by making proposals that will damage the health of smokers and vapers

Useful Links

Clive Bates EU eCig Legislation – Detailed article explaining why the legislation is wrong, everything it covers and the best approach to take in response to this.

James Dunworth Article – Another useful resource about this EU ecig new legislation.

Contact your representatives, click here.

UK MEPs, broken down into for, against and unsure, click here.

Watch the below video, a pleas from VapourTrails.tv presenter Dave Dorns to vapers everywhere to act now.

Protest! Share! Discuss! Write! Complain! We will asking people to sign a petition in our shops with immediate effect to get as many people behind this drive to maintain the liberty of vaping we currently enjoy and rely upon. If electronic cigarettes are banned it will cause many problems and potentially cause an extremely hazardous black market. It prevents the big tobacco industry having any competition aiding their sales, it also prevents competition for pharmaceutical companies and their NRT products, ultimately aiding two of the biggest industries there are whom both are guilty of monopolisation.