“More than a year after new vaping legislation was promised, and with the school year rapidly approaching, there’s still no sign of Labour’s vaping legislation”, says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“Labour announced plans to regulate vaping way back in November 2018. More than a year has passed and we’ve seen nothing from the Government.

“Associate Health Minister Jenny Salesa has said on multiple occasions that we’ll see a new law ‘very soon’.

“But we’re also told that there is a vaping epidemic in schools. If that is true, the first act of the Government when Parliament resumes must be to introduce legislation banning the sale of vaping devices and nicotine e-liquids to under 18s.

“The Government’s task should be to prevent these products from falling into the hands of children.

“But Salesa and Labour instead want to ban vaping flavours and advertising for all New Zealanders. This would be the worst imaginable outcome.

“Punishing tobacco taxes haven’t brought down smoking rates, but the free market has delivered a safe, innovative solution for smokers wanting to quit. Thousands of smokers are switching to this much safer alternative.

“It’s difficult not to wonder if Jenny Salesa is working with the tobacco companies. The Government wants to retain $2 billion in tobacco tax revenue and the tobacco companies want to keep people smoking.

“When the law is finally introduced, it must put vaping and smoking on a level playing field so that 500,000 smokers have an incentive to quit.

“Wholesale banning of vaping flavours and advertising would mean that smokers keep smoking for longer at a massive cost to their health and the country.”

© Scoop Media