Latest news with #smokefree
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Study reveals life-threatening risk of vaping ban that comes into force today...as rule breakers face prison
The disposable vape ban imposed today could backfire, putting hundreds of thousands at risk of dementia, heart disease and organ failure, a new study has suggested. According to research involving 750 UK adults, 42 per cent of vapers will consider returning to lethal smoking if all vapes are banned. Over a quarter of participants also admitted that they have no plans to change their vaping habits, even in light of the disposables ban. As of today, 1 July 2025, shops and businesses can no longer sell disposable vapes, in a bid to stop young people engaging in the harmful habit. Breaching the ban could result in a number of penalties across the UK, including a minimum fine of £200 for businesses that sell disposable vapes in England. Repeat offenders will face up to two years in prison. Trading Standards will also be able to seize any single-use vapes they find. But, research commissioned by Vape Shop suggests the move risks undermining the Government's progress towards a smoke-free Britain. An estimated 5million single use vapes are thrown away every week in the UK. The new poll revealed that 44 per cent of vapers said they originally started vaping to quit smoking. Of the 750 vapers surveyed, 27 per cent admitted that they plan to continue vaping, despite the upcoming ban, with 52 per cent already using refillable and chargeable vapes. Chris Price, E-Commerce Manager at Vape Shop said: 'These findings show a real risk that following the disposable ban, we may see thousands pushed back to smoking—the very habit vaping helped them quit. 'With the 2030 smoke-free ambition, it's important that policy decisions don't undermine progress made over the last decade,' he added. The poll comes as a modelling study conducted by the Future Health Research Centre found that while the ban could see up to 378,000 people give up vaping, smoking rates could sky-rocket. The model scenario indicated that between 90,000 and 200,000 more people could pick up smoking following the ban. Richard Sloggett, the report's author and a former government advisor, said: 'The Government has committed welcome and strong action to reduce smoking and tackle youth vaping. 'However these findings show that urgent work is needed to ensure that efforts to reduce youth vaping do not have the unintended consequence of increasing the numbers smoking – particularly amongst younger people. The ban also feels like being a missed opportunity, with hundreds of thousands of people soon to be looking for alternatives to disposable vapes but over half saying they will simply switch to another product. 'With the ban looming, the Government now needs to get on the front foot, commit to a national mass media anti-smoking campaign and set out more clearly how it will use its forthcoming regulatory powers through the Tobacco and Vapes Bill to help ensure that those using disposable vapes do not turn to smoking instead.' According to Cancer Research UK, vaping is far less harmful than smoking. This is because, according to the NHS, vaping exposes users to fewer toxins and at lower levels than smoking cigarettes. Smoking has been linked to at least 16 different types of cancer as well as various heart and lung diseases, infertility and a host of other complication, killing over 8million people every year. Analysis by the cancer charity found that on average, nearly 160 cancer cases attributed to smoking were diagnosed every day in 2023. However, research presented by Manchester Metropolitan University earlier this year challenged this, suggesting vapes could pose a similar health threat. Researchers say this is because vapes allow people to inhale nicotine as a vapour—produced by heating a liquid typically containing a mixture of harmful chemicals and flavourings. Experts are concerned this high nicotine content increases heart rate and blood pressure, as it does in smokers, making blood vessels constrict and damage artery walls. In the Manchester study, researchers tracked volunteers, aged 27 on average, all of whom had a similar level of fitness. They were given regular stress tests to measure the elasticity of their blood vessels and the speed of blood flow to their brains. Both smokers and vapers achieved a flat reading, signaling they had damaged artery walls that can no longer dilate—an almost certain sign of future serious cardiovascular problems, the researchers concluded. Further tests proved that the blood flow in smokers and vapers is similarly impaired, making them at risk of developing cognitive dysfunction, including dementia. Last year, MailOnline also discovered the number of adverse side effects linked to vaping reported to UK regulators has now eclipsed 1,000, with five of them fatal. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 8million people die from tobacco use every year.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Disposable vapes ban: Call for Northern Ireland Executive to set smoke-free target
As disposable vapes are banned across the UK, one charity is calling on the Northern Ireland Executive to create smoke and vape-free ban, which is in effect from Sunday, means that shops and businesses will no longer be allowed to stock and sell disposable found guilty of stocking or supplying single-use vapes in Northern Ireland could receive a maximum penalty of up two years in prison and a fine of up to £5, the public will still be able to buy reusable and Lung UK NI policy officer, Andrew Wilson, told BBC News NI he welcomes the ban and would like the executive to set a target for making Northern Ireland smoke-free. Speaking to BBC News NI, Mr Wilson said: "We would like the executive to push on from this with the momentum gained and perhaps look at creating smoke and vape-free places in Northern Ireland whether that's in our playgrounds, whether that's in schools or whether that's at our hospitals."He added that research shows there are "very real links with vaping to inflammation of your airways which will then exacerbate existing health conditions, whether you have asthma or COPD". The Tobacco and Vapes Bill is UK-wide legislation that would ban tobacco products for anyone born after January 1, would also bring in restrictions on the advertising and sale of vapes, as well as reviewing the packaging of Wilson said that the Northern Ireland Executive should publicly state its target for a smoke-free Northern Ireland and bring "a bit of equity with the rest of the British Isles who have all done so".He also called for a new tobacco control strategy. Environmental impact In Northern Ireland, the legislation to ban disposable vapes was passed by the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera).Its minister, Andrew Muir, said the single-use vape ban is an important measure to help the said it would also help people's health and alleviate potential fire risks. The minister said retailers are also obliged to take back disposable vapes for recycling once the ban comes in added that he has been engaging with his counterpart in the Republic of Ireland who is progressing similar legislation. What is a disposable vape? They are single useThey are already filled and chargedThey are activated by inhalingThe battery only lasts a short while, sometimes only a day, so they are designed to be discardedThey are often small and fit in a pocketThey do not have a replaceable coil and cannot be recharged or refilled Paul Lagan, who owns a chain of vape shops across Belfast, said the change would be better for the environment, but he has some concerns for the future."We're reducing waste - that's good as a business and as a vaping community," he said."One of the bigger concerns is the vaping tax that's going to be introduced next year where it's £2.20 on a 10ml bottle of liquid (for reusable vapes), effectively doubling the cost of many of these liquids."Mr Lagan said he thinks licensing vape shops could help prevent young people from accessing vapes as added that banning certain flavours could also create a black market for vapes rather than a preventative measure. Darragh McKay said the ban is a "very good idea" as disposable vapes are "all bright colours" and "not like cigarettes" which have warnings on them."I don't think vapes should be banned entirely because not often you see young people smoking like refillable vapes, it's always disposable vapes," he said."Refillable vapes are good for like your mum getting off cigarettes." Alison Nic Craith doesn't vape but thinks the new legislation is "great"."Particularly for kids, because there is so many 11 and 12-year-olds now that vape," she told BBC News NI."I think the shops should just be stricter and like checking IDs, I think that is the best way to go about it." Auron Cull, who does vape but would like to quit, thinks the ban on disposable vapes is a good idea."Whenever I walk about town I just see all these school kids walking about with e-cigs and they go into the shops," he said."In some cases it helps people to get off cigarettes, but then they get off the cigarettes and they're onto the vapes for X amount of time." John Watson doesn't vape but thinks the ban is a good idea because of the environmental impact the disposable vapes can have."I know quite a few people I work with are quite, not annoyed about it, but more kind of frustrated because of the handiness of going and getting one, they're not really wanting to have to go and buy cartridges to fill up," he said he knows of people who are "stock-piling" disposable vapes. Public Health Agency research found that 46% of year 14 school pupils surveyed currently vape, despite it being illegal to sell or supply vapes to under lead for tobacco control with the PHA, Colette Rogers, said the PHA is asking parents and carers to "to use it as an opportunity to discourage vaping among young people and take steps to stop vapes from falling into the hands of under 18s".
News.com.au
4 days ago
- Health
- News.com.au
City of Port Adelaide Enfield council adopts motion to consider smoke ban on Semaphore Rd
A major thoroughfare running through one of South Australia's star beach suburbs could soon be a smoke-free zone. Port Adelaide and Enfield councillors voted unanimously this month for a report into making the western section Semaphore Rd, which connects Semaphore Beach and its famous jetty with a line of shops and restaurants, free of cigarettes and vapes. Semaphore councillor David Wilkins proposed the motion and told NewsWire this week a Semaphore local had asked the council to consider the ban. 'We actually had a local resident reach out to our mayor, who raised the concept of it,' he said. 'The resident is particularly passionate about it because she lost her father in 2020 to sinus cancer, which they have shared with us, was likely caused by passive smoking. 'As a result of that, she's asked whether we can put in smoke free areas, so we're protecting people in the community.' Semaphore lies in Adelaide's western district, bordering Port Adelaide to the east and West Lakes to the South. It's a popular tourist spot, with the foreshore clock tower, jetty and steam train rides that run from the beach to Fort Glanville and back all drawing in families from the city and interstate. The retro Odean Star cinema also sits on Semaphore Rd alongside eateries like Zambrero and Yo-Chi. Mr Wilkins said a smoke ban would elevate the strip's attractiveness even further. 'We've got the beach, the cinema, it's very much a place we want to encourage people to come and visit,' he said. 'This proposal would really help create a welcoming environment to come and visit and support our local traders.' Staffers will now prepare a report and interview businesses on the thoroughfare to gauge their position, including the pubs that serve the strip. 'I think it will likely be supported because it's about encouraging people to come and visit,' Mr Wilkins said. Staff will also investigate whether the council has the legal authority to implement the proposed ban. Cancer Council SA senior manager for prevention Christine Morris praised the idea. 'It's fantastic to hear that local councils are taking a proactive approach to keeping South Australians safe from the harmful effects of smoking, by making more public spaces smoke-free,' she told NewsWire. 'South Australia is leading the nation in providing smoke-free spaces since new laws were introduced last year and we welcome continued action to protect community members from exposure to second-hand smoking, especially vulnerable people and children.' Semaphore already has some smoke-free zones. In 2021, Mr Wilkins organised a ban on smoking outside public buildings such as libraries and community centres. 'It just makes it such a more welcoming and inviting environment,' he said. The City of Port Adelaide Enfield council areas covers a vast portion of Adelaide's north, stretching from Klemzig in the east to Semaphore in the west and the Osborne naval shipyard in the north.
The Sun
4 days ago
- Health
- The Sun
Brits face SMOKING BAN in Spain with lighting up around the pool, in outdoor clubs & even on sunny terraces outlawed
BRITS heading to Spain this summer may be in for a surprise as a tough new smoking ban has been proposed - applying to even terraces, swimming pools and open-air nightclubs. The measure was inspired by an anti-smoking plan aimed at expanding smoke-free zones across Spain. 4 4 The purpose of the law is to extend smoke-free zones to include terraces, bus stops, work vehicles, university campuses, communal swimming pools and open-air nightclubs. Spain's Minister of Health Mónica García told El Pais that she was pushing for the measure so that "Spain can once again be at the forefront of anti-tobacco policies." She added: "I hope we don't give in to the lobbies that are exerting significant pressure, as they always have. "And the tobacco lobby is doing its job. But ours is to defend the health of the population, of the citizens." Spain's Ministry of Health confirmed the measure today and the bill awaits approval from Spain's Council of Ministers followed by the country's parliament. There, it will have to be agreed by other parties before it is made an official law. While this smoking ban will be nationwide, bans have recently been implemented across Spanish beaches. A smoking ban on L'Albir, a popular beach in Alicante, was announced in March. The mayor of L'Alfas Vincente Arques said: "This measure is part of the council's policy to position ourselves as a benchmark for healthy international tourism." It comes as the country has been hit by a wave of protests against overtourism. Thousands flooded the streets of the Canary Islands in mid-May in Spain's third wave of protests this year. Protests have taken place in Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Ela Hierro, La Palma, La Gomera, and Lanzarote. 4
National Post
7 days ago
- Business
- National Post
Philip Morris International to Host Webcast of Presentation at the 2025 dbAccess Global Consumer Conference
Article content Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) (NYSE: PM) will host a live webcast of the company's remarks and Q&A session with Emmanuel Babeau, Chief Financial Officer, at the 2025 dbAccess Global Consumer Conference on Tuesday, June 3, 2025, at approximately 11:15 a.m. CET (5:15 a.m. ET). The Webcast and presentation slides will be available at with a post-event recording of the webcast available for one year at the same site. Article content The webcast will provide a live stream of the entire PMI session and can also be accessed on mobile devices by downloading PMI's free Investor Relations Mobile App at Article content Philip Morris International: A Global Smoke-Free Champion Article content Philip Morris International is a leading international consumer goods company, actively delivering a smoke-free future and evolving its portfolio for the long term to include products outside of the tobacco and nicotine sector. The company's current product portfolio primarily consists of cigarettes and smoke-free products, including heat-not-burn, nicotine pouch and e-vapor products. As of December 31, 2024, PMI's smoke-free products were available for sale in 95 markets, and PMI estimates they were used by 38.6 million adults around the world. The smoke-free business accounted for 42% of PMI's first-quarter 2025 total net revenues. Since 2008, PMI has invested over $14 billion to develop, scientifically substantiate and commercialize innovative smoke-free products for adults who would otherwise continue to smoke, with the goal of completely ending the sale of cigarettes. This includes the building of world-class scientific assessment capabilities, notably in the areas of pre-clinical systems toxicology, clinical and behavioral research, as well as post-market studies. Following a robust science-based review, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized the marketing of Swedish Match's General snus and ZYN nicotine pouches and versions of PMI's IQOS devices and consumables – the first-ever such authorizations in their respective categories. Versions of IQOS devices and consumables and General snus also obtained the first-ever Modified Risk Tobacco Product authorizations from the FDA. With a strong foundation and significant expertise in life sciences, PMI has a long-term ambition to expand into wellness and healthcare areas and aims to enhance life through the delivery of seamless health experiences. References to 'PMI', 'we', 'our' and 'us' mean Philip Morris International Inc., and its subsidiaries. For more information, please visit and Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content Article content Article content
